WEBVTT

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Welcome to the Behind the Shield podcast. As

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always, my name is James Geering, and this week

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it is my absolute honor to welcome back onto

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the show veteran lineman and the man behind the

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Powerline podcast, Ryan Lucas. In the second

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conversation, we discuss a host of topics from

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his unique perspective on the pandemic, the selfless

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courage of our linemen during storms and the

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most recent ice storm, the recruitment crises

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in the trades. reinvesting in domestic industry,

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the impact of AI servers on our grids, and so

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much more. Now, before we get to this incredible

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conversation, as I say every week, please just

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take a moment. Go to whichever app you listen

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to this on, subscribe to the show, leave feedback,

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and leave a rating. Every single five -star rating

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truly does elevate this podcast, therefore making

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it easier for others to find. And this is a free

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library of almost 1 ,200 episodes now. So all

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I ask in return is that you help share these

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incredible men and women's stories so I can get

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them to every single person on planet Earth who

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needs to hear them. So with that being said,

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I welcome back onto the show, Ryan Lucas. Enjoy.

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Well, Ryan, I want to say welcome back. You and

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I have gone back and forth for years and years

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and years. I can actually remember when we had

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our first conversation and we discussed the podcast

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because I was driving in a rainstorm in Southern

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California and you kind of kept me company while

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I was going up PCH. But when you came on the

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show was episode 268, which was January 12th,

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2020. So the world was a little different when

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we first sat down. So with all that being said,

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before we even dive into that, I want to welcome

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you back onto the Behind the Shield podcast.

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James, it's honestly a pleasure. Like I told

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you on the first time you had me on, you're honestly

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one of the reasons I started my own podcast.

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You've been a leader in podcasting. You've done

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it for years and just cranked episodes out. You've

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been an inspiration. So yeah, I'm honored to

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be back, dude, for sure. Yeah. Well, thank you

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so much for all of that. Let's start as the icebreaker,

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even though I want to get to the winter storm

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and breaking ice in a little bit. Let's start

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with what the 2020 moving on looked like for

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you. The reason I think it's so important to

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keep revisiting that time is, I don't know if

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it was the same in Canada, but certainly here

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in the US and the UK, once we emerged from it.

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There was a refusal to have any discussion as

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to what went right, what went wrong, what we

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do differently, how can we make our nation healthier,

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et cetera, et cetera. So all we have now is conversations

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retroactively so that we can at least pull some

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lessons from it. So what was your experience

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as it started sweeping through Canada? And then

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let's talk about any takeaways that you have.

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I love this. I got a really unique perspective

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on it and without diving into too much of the

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politics of it. So my perspective was I took

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a training job. So I took a job as the lead instructor

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for a power line school. Cause I'm a, I'm a tradesman.

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I'm a journeyman lineman. So I took an instructing

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job. in Texas at a training facility, advanced

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electrical training facility in Texas. So I was

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traveling during the entire pandemic from Vancouver,

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British Columbia, Canada to Texas. it was this

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like really first off like eerie unusual experience

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when you roll up to a border crossing that's

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usually you know two hour three hour wait to

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get across and you're the only car it felt really

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like almost like third world -ish like you roll

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it up to this border and you're the only one

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there and there's only one crossing and you know

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all the all of the things people are fully bubble

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suited up coming to you you know what are you

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doing here And I would present my paperwork and

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it was like, okay, sir, see ya. Thanks for doing

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what you do. Carry on. And I would use the land

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border crossing because traveling by air across

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the border was really difficult, was more difficult

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than the land border crossing for me. So I'd

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use a land border crossing. Then I would fly

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out of Seattle to Texas. So as you guys all know,

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Texas, you know, treated the pandemic one way

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and Vancouver, BC or BC or Canada. treated it

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completely different um it was like you know

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bubble suits in canada and texas i have this

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funny story so i was at a steakhouse before returning

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to canada i was at a steakhouse in this little

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town in texas and this you know typical tall

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tall guy all tucked in squared away cowboy hat

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uh you know a pistol on his hip in the steakhouse

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having a steak nobody's wearing masks nobody's

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like nobody's six feet apart nobody's any of

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that like it was normal life and you know he'd

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stand up to pay for his dinner and he literally

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pulls out a wad of cash from his pocket licks

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his fingers peels the cash lays it on the table

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and walks out so i got this happening the very

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next day i'm flying back to canada and it's full

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bubble suits, full like interrogations, it's

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COVID testing, it's shots, it's all this stuff,

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right? And just that dichotomy of experiencing

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that. So then I'd go home to my family members,

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you know, visit them over Christmas or anything

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like that. I come from a very small town in central

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BC, Canada. It's a blue collar forestry mining

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town. A lot of people in that town don't really

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get out too much. If they do, it's like a Mexico

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vacation every year. They don't really have a

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big worldview of things. And here I am crossing

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borders, dealing with airports, thousands of

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people every month, two airports, three airports,

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four airports a month. That's my experience.

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I'm going home. I'm trying to tell them, don't

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be so fearful you know have a little bit of an

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open mind so like that's that's my point of view

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on it and that's my perspective on it that's

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what i've tried to like implement to people is

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like when things like this happen expand your

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mind a little bit get off social media or you

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know be on social media but just have an open

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mind at least and go talk to real humans with

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different experiences like in real time experiences

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because a lot of my family members just you know

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treated it the whole like this is what I'm seeing

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on Facebook you everyone needs to be fearful

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you know and I'm like it's not like that I I

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never got COVID and I literally was traveling

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like this every month you know it is what it

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is maybe I didn't for some reason but like it

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wasn't as big bad and scary for a lot of people

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and I understand I'm respectful of we did lose

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people because of it there's probably other reasons

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associated with that but again just That whole

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open -mindedness, I think, is super important.

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Even look at our times right now. Super important.

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Keep an open mind. Check different perspectives.

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And that's kind of what I go out of the pandemic

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with. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I've said this on here

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many, many times. There was one truth during

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the whole pandemic. The healthier the population,

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the higher chance there is of them surviving

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being exposed to the virus. And so when you look

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at what was told to people on that fearful side,

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as you said, it was stay at home. Don't see your

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family and friends. You know, get food delivered.

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You know, get alcohol delivered. Binge watch

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Tiger King. And then obviously when you're staying

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at home, you're not getting any exposure to nature.

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You know, you're not getting sun on your skin.

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You're not getting exercise. And I've said this

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many times, if you could actually write down

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how would you make people even more vulnerable

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to a virus, that's exactly it. Conversely, what

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should have been said, whether you, and I've

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always put it this way, if you believe in vaccines,

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and you know, this one was obviously up in the

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air as far as efficacy. then you want to have

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the healthiest immune system you can to have

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a healthy response to that vaccine to then build

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the immunity. If you don't believe in vaccines,

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you want to have the healthiest body you can

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so you have a healthy immune response to the

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virus. So the common denominator is the healthy

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body. And we know, and I was hailed as a heretic

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early on, we know that the comorbidities were

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a big, big, massive reason why people died from...

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COVID. And yes, there's anomalies of seemingly

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fit people, but I know a lot of seemingly fit

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people that have heart attacks out of the blue,

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that have aneurysms out of the blue. It happens

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and it's tragic, but you don't negate the wisdom

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of the masses from these unusual medical cases.

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There was a definite understanding that if you

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get outside and you spend time with your loved

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ones, And again, you don't have to be licking

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each other's faces, but you're moving, you're

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getting vitamin D, all these things that we know,

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you're going to have a much healthier outcome.

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And then more importantly, as you emerge from

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something like this, the number one priority

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should be the health of your nation ready for

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the next time, whatever we name the next virus,

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Steve the Badger Master or whatever the fuck

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we're going to call the next one that's going

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to freak everyone out. The healthy population

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is going to do well. And look at Norway, look

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at Sweden, look at Portugal, look at these places

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that really, you know, like you were saying,

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took it very seriously at the beginning, started

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to open it up like we did in Florida. But Scandinavia

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has a very healthy population. They were demonized

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by the rest of the world and they had some of

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the lowest deaths of anywhere per capita. So

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these conversations are important because we

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have to pull the common sense out. of the political

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trench warfare that was going on so that we,

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the planet, can learn from it and be ready for

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the next time. This is something I've put a lot

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of effort into in the last year and a half, I

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say. Just family scenarios, the stress of the

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pandemic, all of that. I gained weight. I started

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to get unhealthy. And I took a look at myself

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and I was like, this can't. go on and it it sounds

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like it it needs a drastic like change like but

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it's not that drastic getting healthy isn't if

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you just take it one day at a time one bite at

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a time implement one thing at a time you can

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turn around a massive amount in a year in six

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months that's what i did like i 50 pounds in

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one year gone um just like implementing simple

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things james like people always want that that

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crazy thing that's just gonna do it that magic

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thing right there's a lot of magic things kind

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of like coming out now shots and things like

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that but like if you just break it down to simple

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things stop eating like an get outside get some

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vitamin d like go for a walk you don't have to

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start running freaking marathons like everybody's

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doing right now like it's great to have all of

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those people online on social media being that

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inspiration being that motivation doing 15 marathons

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a month but like that the average everyday normal

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person does not need to do that in order to make

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like huge gains in your life huge gains in your

00:12:17.840 --> 00:12:21.350
life A few things I've done that are, they're

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mine, they're what's worked for me, but they're

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super simple. Tim Ferriss just talked about it

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on a podcast with the, on the Sean Ryan show.

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He called it, he called it morning pages. So

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just taking, Tim's always lived. he's had fears

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and anxieties and things like that. He's been

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pretty open about talking about them online.

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Right. So he's, this has been huge for him. And

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I've just been naturally doing this because I

00:12:48.419 --> 00:12:50.580
just heard this pod, but naturally doing this

00:12:50.580 --> 00:12:53.480
is like writing every morning, just getting what's

00:12:53.480 --> 00:12:56.960
in your head down on paper, stream of thought,

00:12:57.100 --> 00:12:59.840
get out your fears, get out your anxieties, get

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like, get all these things just out of your head

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on paper. It's made a massive difference in my

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mental health, how I attack the day, my productivity

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in the day, those sorts of things. That's helped.

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Walking has been an anchor for me. If I need

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to get over anything, if I need to organize my

00:13:20.679 --> 00:13:23.759
head, organize my thoughts, just getting out

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for one hour, it's like 8 ,000 steps, 8 ,000

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to 10 ,000 steps in an hour. it's perfect you're

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outside in nature all of those benefits it's

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simple things plus you're losing weight you're

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working on your cardio like all of these things

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like it's not complicated stuff you don't have

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to don't over complicate it it's it's simple

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it really is i had a conversation the other day

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and it was interesting because we were talking

00:13:48.240 --> 00:13:50.320
about firefighter recruitment i think it was

00:13:50.320 --> 00:13:51.960
with one of the british firefighters i had on

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the show And with the GLP -1 shots that you're

00:13:55.929 --> 00:13:58.210
referring to, it's funny how I posed some groups

00:13:58.210 --> 00:14:00.110
were to shots and all of a sudden they'll stick

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it anywhere in the body now. It'll help them

00:14:01.990 --> 00:14:06.850
lose weight. But what is an interesting conversation,

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and I'm sure it's the same in your profession.

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And I think they have an application. My wife

00:14:13.059 --> 00:14:15.000
lost her best friend. I lost one of my fire academy

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friends to gastric bypass, complications from.

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Neither of them, I would argue, were actually

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really dangerously obese. They were obese, but

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they were young enough, I think, to really be

00:14:27.639 --> 00:14:29.580
able to address it in different ways. And I think

00:14:29.580 --> 00:14:32.440
both of them, the GLP ones, actually would have

00:14:32.440 --> 00:14:35.360
been a great tool alongside trying to change

00:14:35.360 --> 00:14:39.129
dietary habits and exercise habits. But we're

00:14:39.129 --> 00:14:42.990
seeing that as the easy button now. What is interesting

00:14:42.990 --> 00:14:46.970
to me is say you have a deconditioned young man

00:14:46.970 --> 00:14:52.529
who was overweight and now wants to go and become

00:14:52.529 --> 00:14:56.190
an alignment or a firefighter and uses the pill.

00:14:57.289 --> 00:15:00.870
There's no sweat equity in that. And I'm not

00:15:00.870 --> 00:15:03.730
saying that you don't deserve to be thin unless

00:15:03.730 --> 00:15:06.350
you fought for it kind of thing. But if you've

00:15:06.350 --> 00:15:10.019
just used that. You haven't experienced suffering.

00:15:10.159 --> 00:15:12.399
You haven't done the strength training. You haven't

00:15:12.399 --> 00:15:15.139
worked on the cardio. So you may look like you're

00:15:15.139 --> 00:15:16.899
fighting fit when you walk through the door,

00:15:17.019 --> 00:15:19.720
but you don't have that background of, like you

00:15:19.720 --> 00:15:22.679
said, the discomfort that it takes to actually,

00:15:22.820 --> 00:15:24.879
you know, either for someone who's heavier, lose

00:15:24.879 --> 00:15:26.840
the weight and be ready to be a firefighter,

00:15:26.840 --> 00:15:29.320
or in my case, be a skinny beanpole and have

00:15:29.320 --> 00:15:31.220
to put the work in to be strong enough to be

00:15:31.220 --> 00:15:33.919
a firefighter. So what's your perception on that

00:15:33.919 --> 00:15:36.840
with, you know, the weight loss without the exercise

00:15:36.840 --> 00:15:40.059
behind it? as far as a very physical profession

00:15:40.059 --> 00:15:44.980
like ours my point of view on it is it's it's

00:15:44.980 --> 00:15:49.460
an and thing so it's this and that so if if you're

00:15:49.460 --> 00:15:53.799
like morbidly obese i i have got nothing against

00:15:53.799 --> 00:15:57.860
going and getting a glp -1 you know, prescription

00:15:57.860 --> 00:16:01.019
from your doctor and, and getting on that treatment

00:16:01.019 --> 00:16:03.700
plan. Because like, if it's going to take you

00:16:03.700 --> 00:16:07.019
from morbidly obese down to like a healthy weight

00:16:07.019 --> 00:16:10.340
and get you to the point where you can get outside

00:16:10.340 --> 00:16:15.080
and walk or run or, you know, lift weights and

00:16:15.080 --> 00:16:17.840
get you comfortable going into a gym now, because

00:16:17.840 --> 00:16:20.899
you're not that uncomfortable with your body

00:16:20.899 --> 00:16:22.740
and stuff like, so it's going to knock all of

00:16:22.740 --> 00:16:24.940
that down and get you, get you out and get you

00:16:24.940 --> 00:16:28.549
active. let's go i'm i'm all for i'm all for

00:16:28.549 --> 00:16:33.909
it really i am do it like go after it um but

00:16:33.909 --> 00:16:37.389
as far as like now joining a workforce like the

00:16:37.389 --> 00:16:39.450
trades i think that that's where we have to really

00:16:39.450 --> 00:16:43.750
look at the training programs within the trades

00:16:43.750 --> 00:16:46.169
or you know first responders or something like

00:16:46.169 --> 00:16:49.269
what's the reject rejection criteria look like

00:16:49.269 --> 00:16:53.029
how do we recognize those people and identify

00:16:53.029 --> 00:16:56.009
you know maybe some of them need help like they

00:16:56.009 --> 00:16:59.370
actually want to do it and they just need guidance

00:16:59.370 --> 00:17:02.289
and help and training and you know proper programs

00:17:02.289 --> 00:17:04.349
to get them to that point but we have to be able

00:17:04.349 --> 00:17:06.809
to identify that and that has that that's on

00:17:06.809 --> 00:17:09.309
us you know we can't just like let them squeak

00:17:09.309 --> 00:17:14.200
in and especially in line work you just you won't

00:17:14.200 --> 00:17:17.039
be able to like you'll be very quickly identified

00:17:17.039 --> 00:17:21.000
as as someone that can't take it and it's kind

00:17:21.000 --> 00:17:24.240
of like the trades and especially line work there's

00:17:24.240 --> 00:17:27.420
like a there can be a natural selection process

00:17:27.420 --> 00:17:30.660
like just a qualifying like almost a qualifying

00:17:30.660 --> 00:17:34.960
stage like not unlike the military or first responders

00:17:34.960 --> 00:17:37.660
I'm sure it's you know it's not hazing but it's

00:17:37.660 --> 00:17:40.890
like we're like the vets are going to let you

00:17:40.890 --> 00:17:44.210
know that you're not up to snuff pretty quick

00:17:44.210 --> 00:17:48.809
yeah i wrote a story of my first book um and

00:17:48.809 --> 00:17:51.890
it was something that i witnessed um when i was

00:17:51.890 --> 00:17:53.829
doing you did a test and then you did a physical

00:17:53.829 --> 00:17:55.990
test and written test and a medical skills test

00:17:55.990 --> 00:17:59.190
and then they shared your results with fire departments

00:17:59.190 --> 00:18:02.750
all around the south of florida and so i met

00:18:02.750 --> 00:18:05.130
this um kind of version of the combat challenge

00:18:05.130 --> 00:18:08.339
like a firefighter physical test um And at the

00:18:08.339 --> 00:18:11.779
beginning, these two guys, you know, were walking

00:18:11.779 --> 00:18:15.019
around and bright orange bodybuilders, you know,

00:18:15.039 --> 00:18:17.579
their skinny little vest was barely hanging on.

00:18:17.720 --> 00:18:20.920
And to my naive, just fresh out of fire academy

00:18:20.920 --> 00:18:23.380
eyes, I was like, well, these guys must be phenomenal

00:18:23.380 --> 00:18:26.400
athletes, you know, because I mean, they're cockrolling

00:18:26.400 --> 00:18:29.440
around like they own the farmyard. And which

00:18:29.440 --> 00:18:31.500
is very bizarre because everyone else is nervous

00:18:31.500 --> 00:18:33.569
and, you know. chomping at the bit to try and

00:18:33.569 --> 00:18:35.750
get a job in a very competitive market it was

00:18:35.750 --> 00:18:38.410
weird to kind of have that kind of you know um

00:18:38.410 --> 00:18:42.670
physicality but i'll never forget the first one

00:18:42.670 --> 00:18:45.710
went the bigger of the you know muscular tangerines

00:18:45.710 --> 00:18:50.769
went first and uh i i'm not exaggerating he made

00:18:50.769 --> 00:18:54.769
it up two flights of stairs and tapped out now

00:18:54.769 --> 00:18:57.190
we're just doing this in gym stuff and i think

00:18:57.190 --> 00:18:59.309
it was a helmet and and gloves that was it so

00:18:59.309 --> 00:19:00.990
you're not even wearing bunker gear and a tank

00:19:01.849 --> 00:19:05.029
Two flights of stairs and gas and then as if

00:19:05.029 --> 00:19:08.309
scripted, you know, a few rotations later when

00:19:08.309 --> 00:19:11.970
his friends turn, same exact place. And what

00:19:11.970 --> 00:19:14.650
I realize is that looking like you can do the

00:19:14.650 --> 00:19:17.309
job and being able to do the job are two very

00:19:17.309 --> 00:19:19.789
different things. And I think this is an important

00:19:19.789 --> 00:19:21.829
conversation. It's coming from compassion and

00:19:21.829 --> 00:19:24.289
empathy. It's not judgmental. But if you are

00:19:24.289 --> 00:19:27.339
on a weight loss journey with a GLP -1. which

00:19:27.339 --> 00:19:29.960
we're witnessing is very effective, and you're

00:19:29.960 --> 00:19:32.500
thinking about a trade, you know, first responder

00:19:32.500 --> 00:19:35.599
profession, the military, understand that that

00:19:35.599 --> 00:19:38.559
alone isn't going to cut it. And so just like

00:19:38.559 --> 00:19:42.200
you said, it's a great adjunct to then, you know,

00:19:42.299 --> 00:19:44.680
you're on ramp into strength and conditioning

00:19:44.680 --> 00:19:47.000
training, you know, and, you know, suffering

00:19:47.000 --> 00:19:48.259
because you're going to have to, you know, you

00:19:48.259 --> 00:19:50.000
have to deal with some shit in these jobs. You

00:19:50.000 --> 00:19:51.460
know, you've got to be able to, you know, be

00:19:51.460 --> 00:19:53.420
comfortable being uncomfortable to sound cliche.

00:19:54.250 --> 00:19:55.970
But I think this is a really good time to be

00:19:55.970 --> 00:19:57.710
talking about that because if there's a potential

00:19:57.710 --> 00:20:01.109
man or woman that's entering one of these professions

00:20:01.109 --> 00:20:04.890
and you're on this journey, good for you. But

00:20:04.890 --> 00:20:08.609
know that if you start doing the work as well,

00:20:08.750 --> 00:20:12.049
not only is it going to amplify your weight loss,

00:20:12.230 --> 00:20:15.130
but now you're going to start working towards

00:20:15.130 --> 00:20:17.910
being ready when you do toe the line. But if

00:20:17.910 --> 00:20:20.690
it's a fallacy of, well, now I'm the right weight

00:20:20.690 --> 00:20:24.359
for this job. You know, kudos to everyone who's

00:20:24.359 --> 00:20:26.359
lost the weight through just sheer hard work

00:20:26.359 --> 00:20:30.099
and diet and, you know, discipline. They're going

00:20:30.099 --> 00:20:31.880
to get it by the time they get to that right

00:20:31.880 --> 00:20:34.619
weight because they've suffered immensely. But

00:20:34.619 --> 00:20:36.940
because there is this shortcut now, and I agree

00:20:36.940 --> 00:20:40.180
with you, it absolutely has an application. Now

00:20:40.180 --> 00:20:42.400
is a great time to have that conversation of

00:20:42.400 --> 00:20:44.319
like, hey, if you are using this and it's going

00:20:44.319 --> 00:20:48.200
to work. Think about starting that strength conditioning

00:20:48.200 --> 00:20:51.299
journey now as well so that when you hit that

00:20:51.299 --> 00:20:53.720
target weight, you have done the conditioning

00:20:53.720 --> 00:20:55.700
too, because otherwise you're going to find yourself

00:20:55.700 --> 00:20:58.240
looking exactly like you said, looking like you

00:20:58.240 --> 00:21:01.380
can do the job, failing that initial test miserably,

00:21:01.480 --> 00:21:04.019
and then you have to go and do some soul searching.

00:21:04.180 --> 00:21:07.660
So I think it's an exciting conversation to get

00:21:07.660 --> 00:21:09.519
people thinking about that when they begin this

00:21:09.519 --> 00:21:12.559
journey. The other thing I'd get, I'd pair off

00:21:12.559 --> 00:21:14.400
of that as well. So there's the strength and

00:21:14.400 --> 00:21:17.359
conditioning component to that, which 100 % agree

00:21:17.359 --> 00:21:20.380
with you. Go work on that anyway. And I can talk

00:21:20.380 --> 00:21:21.940
a little bit more about that and the reasons

00:21:21.940 --> 00:21:26.180
for strength and conditioning for the trades.

00:21:27.019 --> 00:21:29.539
But there's the mindset component behind it as

00:21:29.539 --> 00:21:32.759
well. So that person that's gone and suffered

00:21:32.759 --> 00:21:36.319
to, you know, eat right, be disciplined, lose

00:21:36.319 --> 00:21:41.039
the weight through pure suffering. they've gained

00:21:41.039 --> 00:21:44.859
a component of mindset that the others haven't

00:21:44.859 --> 00:21:48.039
as well. And that mindset going into, especially

00:21:48.039 --> 00:21:50.660
like I can speak directly to the power line industry,

00:21:50.880 --> 00:21:54.960
when you've got to go into, for example, like

00:21:54.960 --> 00:21:56.579
storms, hurricanes, everyone's familiar with

00:21:56.579 --> 00:22:00.480
mass hurricanes. linemen are going into the cities

00:22:00.480 --> 00:22:03.000
you know in the middle of the eye of the hurricane

00:22:03.000 --> 00:22:06.960
sleeping in their trucks waiting for it to blow

00:22:06.960 --> 00:22:09.480
everything down so that they can jump right into

00:22:09.480 --> 00:22:11.579
fixing it and while everyone else is leaving

00:22:11.579 --> 00:22:14.880
the city you know leaving home leaving the country

00:22:14.880 --> 00:22:18.440
leaving the state getting out and that's not

00:22:18.440 --> 00:22:20.509
just like everyone that lives there but that's

00:22:20.509 --> 00:22:22.269
everyone that lives there and works there and

00:22:22.269 --> 00:22:24.009
has businesses so like these linemen are going

00:22:24.009 --> 00:22:27.029
there and there's no food you know there's no

00:22:27.029 --> 00:22:28.650
shelter there's like i said they're sleeping

00:22:28.650 --> 00:22:32.309
in their trucks and they're working 16 18 20

00:22:32.309 --> 00:22:35.470
hour days like literally sleeping on the job

00:22:35.470 --> 00:22:38.390
to get four hours of sleep just to continue to

00:22:38.390 --> 00:22:42.109
serve you know to continue to restore power which

00:22:42.109 --> 00:22:46.069
means restoring some sort of normalcy to life

00:22:46.069 --> 00:22:49.920
right there's a mindset component to that like

00:22:49.920 --> 00:22:54.039
let's carry on and not only that the people that

00:22:54.039 --> 00:22:56.900
that stay behind like the regular civilians that

00:22:56.900 --> 00:23:00.799
stay behind a lot of the time not all the time

00:23:00.799 --> 00:23:03.160
so don't get on me for this one but a lot of

00:23:03.160 --> 00:23:06.720
the time they're not very understanding respectful

00:23:06.720 --> 00:23:10.819
you know of what these men and women are going

00:23:10.819 --> 00:23:14.359
through to restore that normalcy it's they can

00:23:14.359 --> 00:23:16.559
get treated with a lot of disrespect you know

00:23:16.559 --> 00:23:20.579
a lot of anger angst all of that stuff you know

00:23:20.579 --> 00:23:22.140
for good reasons like their powers out their

00:23:22.140 --> 00:23:24.400
life's been destroyed they've maybe lost their

00:23:24.400 --> 00:23:27.200
home whatever the reasons are but that gets directed

00:23:27.200 --> 00:23:30.119
on whoever's around and those people are first

00:23:30.119 --> 00:23:33.220
responders and line alignment line crews right

00:23:33.220 --> 00:23:36.039
um so you got to be able to deal with that too

00:23:36.039 --> 00:23:38.880
right so there's the mindset component behind

00:23:39.500 --> 00:23:43.579
this as well and if you just lose weight like

00:23:43.579 --> 00:23:45.779
it just falls off of you because you took a glp

00:23:45.779 --> 00:23:49.180
-1 and you go to get in a trade like line work

00:23:49.180 --> 00:23:52.680
or military ems like you need to work on that

00:23:52.680 --> 00:23:55.460
mindset component too not just the physical side

00:23:55.460 --> 00:23:59.900
of it it's both absolutely you just made me think

00:23:59.900 --> 00:24:02.660
about something as well one of the most beautiful

00:24:02.660 --> 00:24:06.920
things about the pandemic apart from The environmental

00:24:06.920 --> 00:24:10.440
impact in a positive way, which sadly was disregarded

00:24:10.440 --> 00:24:12.519
after about six months. But, you know, watching,

00:24:12.579 --> 00:24:15.740
you know, the sky clear up in L .A., watching

00:24:15.740 --> 00:24:19.059
dolphins swim upstream in the Venice Canal and

00:24:19.059 --> 00:24:21.519
some of the incredible things that we saw. But

00:24:21.519 --> 00:24:24.539
the other thing was appreciation for the people

00:24:24.539 --> 00:24:27.000
we take for granted. So, you know, whether it's

00:24:27.000 --> 00:24:28.839
the bin men, as we call them in England, the

00:24:28.839 --> 00:24:31.000
people that take the garbage away, whether it's,

00:24:31.000 --> 00:24:32.740
you know, the people that stock the shelves in

00:24:32.740 --> 00:24:34.619
the stores and, you know, the checkout clerics.

00:24:35.359 --> 00:24:37.720
Everyone that we just kind of, you know, don't

00:24:37.720 --> 00:24:40.359
really give two thoughts about finally, you know,

00:24:40.359 --> 00:24:42.460
got some appreciation, obviously first responders

00:24:42.460 --> 00:24:44.859
and doctors and nurses and everyone else that

00:24:44.859 --> 00:24:47.900
keeps the hospital running as well. But kind

00:24:47.900 --> 00:24:51.099
of like you hear this, I miss 9 -12 conversation

00:24:51.099 --> 00:24:53.720
where there was that gratitude and there was

00:24:53.720 --> 00:24:55.839
that coming together and fuck me, do we need

00:24:55.839 --> 00:24:59.619
that more now than ever? But, you know, fast

00:24:59.619 --> 00:25:02.859
forward a few years and now. dying firefighters

00:25:02.859 --> 00:25:05.500
are you know fighting the city of new york to

00:25:05.500 --> 00:25:08.140
try and get coverage for their families after

00:25:08.140 --> 00:25:09.819
they die and all of a sudden it's a different

00:25:09.819 --> 00:25:13.019
conversation what did you see about as far as

00:25:13.019 --> 00:25:17.299
the gratitude for lineman during covid um and

00:25:17.299 --> 00:25:21.940
then you know has that dropped off as well this

00:25:21.940 --> 00:25:25.339
gratitude for lineman so this this awareness

00:25:25.339 --> 00:25:30.089
for lineman has been something that people in

00:25:30.089 --> 00:25:32.210
the line community have been pulling for awareness

00:25:32.210 --> 00:25:36.910
of us and what we do for years and decades. It's

00:25:36.910 --> 00:25:39.990
only like these hurricanes recently or these

00:25:39.990 --> 00:25:44.809
mass storm events that bring awareness to line

00:25:44.809 --> 00:25:47.390
workers. And a lot of the times, so during these

00:25:47.390 --> 00:25:49.430
events, when you get like these mass outages,

00:25:49.450 --> 00:25:52.069
you get line workers from all over the world,

00:25:52.130 --> 00:25:54.930
all over the country, congregate to one area.

00:25:55.440 --> 00:25:58.519
to restore power a lot of them do it you know

00:25:58.519 --> 00:26:02.079
not every lineman does it for service to other

00:26:02.079 --> 00:26:04.380
people a lot of them do it because it is really

00:26:04.380 --> 00:26:07.359
good money as well right and you get these storm

00:26:07.359 --> 00:26:12.319
chasers so unfortunately and fortunately those

00:26:12.319 --> 00:26:15.400
are the events that raise the most awareness

00:26:15.400 --> 00:26:19.779
for what we do like i said you get the good the

00:26:19.779 --> 00:26:23.240
bad the ugly line work on a day -to -day basis

00:26:24.119 --> 00:26:26.940
is what I'm into promoting, I'm into raising

00:26:26.940 --> 00:26:31.480
awareness of, is our grid in the United States

00:26:31.480 --> 00:26:35.500
needs to at least double in the next five years.

00:26:35.660 --> 00:26:38.960
And most people don't quite understand what that

00:26:38.960 --> 00:26:45.900
actually means. That means a huge amount of direct

00:26:45.900 --> 00:26:50.380
craft, skilled craft labor workers, linemen.

00:26:50.680 --> 00:26:53.900
electricians it's every trade craft skilled labor

00:26:53.900 --> 00:26:58.279
um it takes that plus it takes just as much or

00:26:58.279 --> 00:27:02.740
or more support services to keep those men and

00:27:02.740 --> 00:27:07.599
women building and if this grid needs to at least

00:27:07.599 --> 00:27:10.400
double at least at minimum double in five years

00:27:10.400 --> 00:27:13.619
i don't think people can really grasp what that

00:27:13.619 --> 00:27:17.240
looks like and and what how big the workforce

00:27:17.240 --> 00:27:21.049
needs to grow in order to do that and everyone

00:27:21.049 --> 00:27:25.650
gets so um so concerned about ai and ai taking

00:27:25.650 --> 00:27:29.190
jobs and this and that blah blah blah ai is coming

00:27:29.190 --> 00:27:32.869
for a lot of jobs but elon even said it on a

00:27:32.869 --> 00:27:34.750
recent episode i think with with rogue and he

00:27:34.750 --> 00:27:39.529
said that jobs that move where it's people moving

00:27:39.529 --> 00:27:43.009
physical mass like people are picking things

00:27:43.009 --> 00:27:45.349
up and moving them or doing it with their hands

00:27:45.349 --> 00:27:48.670
like those are the last jobs to ever be taken

00:27:48.670 --> 00:27:51.869
by robots and ai i don't know if people have

00:27:51.869 --> 00:27:54.049
seen robots they've come they've advanced a lot

00:27:54.049 --> 00:27:57.309
in a lot of ways but they are not putting on

00:27:57.309 --> 00:28:00.210
a set of hooks and climbing a power pole and

00:28:00.210 --> 00:28:03.269
doing what we do up there they're not they're

00:28:03.269 --> 00:28:05.349
just i've seen i've seen these things they're

00:28:05.349 --> 00:28:07.869
not they're not there yet not saying they won't

00:28:07.869 --> 00:28:11.589
get there but for this for your lifetime if you're

00:28:11.589 --> 00:28:13.509
just starting out or if you're looking about

00:28:13.509 --> 00:28:17.269
thinking about getting into a trade um it trades

00:28:17.269 --> 00:28:19.690
are trades are it man so that's like i'm into

00:28:19.690 --> 00:28:22.450
raising awareness about that in a good way in

00:28:22.450 --> 00:28:24.970
a positive way because it is a great lifestyle

00:28:24.970 --> 00:28:28.210
the trades are awesome line work is such a great

00:28:28.210 --> 00:28:31.809
career for people um that that's what i'm into

00:28:31.809 --> 00:28:34.779
promoting it you know fed two generations of

00:28:34.779 --> 00:28:37.700
my family i have an 18 19 year old son now and

00:28:37.700 --> 00:28:40.500
it turns 19 tomorrow he just told me recently

00:28:40.500 --> 00:28:43.059
that he wants to be a lineman i didn't push it

00:28:43.059 --> 00:28:44.759
nothing so that's going to be three generations

00:28:44.759 --> 00:28:47.579
in the trade now and there's something special

00:28:47.579 --> 00:28:49.619
to that but we need more of it like drastically

00:28:49.619 --> 00:28:52.319
need more of it so yeah into raising awareness

00:28:52.319 --> 00:28:55.980
for it speaking of ai one of the things that

00:28:55.980 --> 00:28:59.920
comes up recently and again i'm so uneducated

00:28:59.920 --> 00:29:03.519
on this area but If I'm describing this correctly,

00:29:03.819 --> 00:29:08.619
the servers that AI ultimately lives in are such

00:29:08.619 --> 00:29:13.180
an insane power draw and the heat that they create

00:29:13.180 --> 00:29:18.000
that it's at a detriment to, I guess, power supplies

00:29:18.000 --> 00:29:20.859
and even the cooling of the planet, I would imagine.

00:29:21.099 --> 00:29:23.859
So what have you heard in your industry as far

00:29:23.859 --> 00:29:27.440
as the potentially negative effects of these

00:29:27.440 --> 00:29:29.660
servers that are generating AI in the first place?

00:29:30.890 --> 00:29:33.369
I haven't got too much experience on the negative

00:29:33.369 --> 00:29:37.650
effects of the servers, but I can speak to the

00:29:37.650 --> 00:29:42.829
demand again for craft skilled labor to build

00:29:42.829 --> 00:29:46.890
these things. Like these data centers are huge

00:29:46.890 --> 00:29:51.309
again, like data centers are so kept under the

00:29:51.309 --> 00:29:53.809
radar because of their proprietary, you know,

00:29:53.809 --> 00:29:55.970
like nobody, nobody from Facebook or Google or

00:29:55.970 --> 00:29:58.910
whoever entity. wants you to know what's happening

00:29:58.910 --> 00:30:01.269
inside of a data center so they're not marketed

00:30:01.269 --> 00:30:03.769
they're not like talked about you don't get to

00:30:03.769 --> 00:30:05.829
really see them you just hear this these two

00:30:05.829 --> 00:30:09.650
words data center i suggest you go try to find

00:30:09.650 --> 00:30:12.089
one where you can actually see the size and scale

00:30:12.089 --> 00:30:15.349
of these things and then just yeah go ask ai

00:30:15.349 --> 00:30:20.559
yourself to explain a data center to you and

00:30:20.559 --> 00:30:23.460
like the demands on the grid, the demands on

00:30:23.460 --> 00:30:25.619
the workforce. And you'll be blown away by the

00:30:25.619 --> 00:30:28.200
numbers and just your statistics that it gives

00:30:28.200 --> 00:30:30.920
you around what the requirements are for that.

00:30:30.980 --> 00:30:34.440
It's massive. And we just like, we literally

00:30:34.440 --> 00:30:39.259
don't have the people to do that work. So forget

00:30:39.259 --> 00:30:43.339
AI taking the jobs, like the jobs are there.

00:30:43.420 --> 00:30:45.099
They're ready for the taking. Anybody can just

00:30:45.099 --> 00:30:48.640
step into them. I don't know if I'm old fashioned,

00:30:48.759 --> 00:30:52.059
but if it's going to draw that much power. And,

00:30:52.059 --> 00:30:54.099
you know, yeah, it's great that you can get a

00:30:54.099 --> 00:30:56.759
photograph of yourself to dance to, you know,

00:30:56.759 --> 00:30:59.980
Mexican gangbanger video. But there's a part

00:30:59.980 --> 00:31:02.160
of me that is like, well, when's too much, though?

00:31:02.680 --> 00:31:05.099
Like, can't we just roll the clock back in some

00:31:05.099 --> 00:31:08.599
areas? Do we need AI to do everything now? You

00:31:08.599 --> 00:31:10.059
know, people say, oh, I just punch it in. It's

00:31:10.059 --> 00:31:11.200
going to make a business. We're going to make

00:31:11.200 --> 00:31:13.839
a million dollars a year. well a do you need

00:31:13.839 --> 00:31:16.099
a million dollars a year and b once everyone

00:31:16.099 --> 00:31:18.180
punches that thing then are you still going to

00:31:18.180 --> 00:31:20.519
be making a million dollars i mean i'm no economist

00:31:20.519 --> 00:31:23.640
but i think the answer is no so i don't know

00:31:23.640 --> 00:31:27.079
like if this is becoming detrimental to you know

00:31:27.079 --> 00:31:30.240
the environment and just the the basic requirement

00:31:30.240 --> 00:31:33.130
for you know comfort that we had let's say when

00:31:33.130 --> 00:31:35.529
we were kids which i thought was ample even then

00:31:35.529 --> 00:31:37.809
i love the fact that television is clearer now

00:31:37.809 --> 00:31:40.250
and some other things but you know realistically

00:31:40.250 --> 00:31:42.549
how much do we actually need to be very comfortable

00:31:42.549 --> 00:31:45.789
and you know when is when is too much too much

00:31:45.789 --> 00:31:48.029
you know so that that's my only thing is now

00:31:48.029 --> 00:31:50.990
we're hearing just how hungry these data centers

00:31:50.990 --> 00:31:54.690
are for natural resources you know is there a

00:31:54.690 --> 00:31:56.529
place to actually draw a line in this whole thing

00:31:57.690 --> 00:32:00.430
I think you bring up a good point as well. That

00:32:00.430 --> 00:32:03.829
got me thinking about something, just the atrophy

00:32:03.829 --> 00:32:09.230
of the human skills. Like if you're going to

00:32:09.230 --> 00:32:12.690
AI to just do everything now, how quickly are

00:32:12.690 --> 00:32:16.130
you losing your abilities to do things like be

00:32:16.130 --> 00:32:20.170
creative yourself? Like you're a writer. The

00:32:20.170 --> 00:32:24.430
writing tools in these LMs are. Man, they're

00:32:24.430 --> 00:32:26.829
getting incredible to where you can just give

00:32:26.829 --> 00:32:29.470
them a prompt and it can spit you out the next

00:32:29.470 --> 00:32:32.789
book. Right. But you didn't write that. Yes,

00:32:32.869 --> 00:32:34.809
you gave it the idea and there was some creativity

00:32:34.809 --> 00:32:38.130
around that, but you didn't go through the suffering

00:32:38.130 --> 00:32:41.549
of writing that book. Cause I'm sure I've never

00:32:41.549 --> 00:32:43.309
written a book, but from what I've heard from

00:32:43.309 --> 00:32:45.690
people, it's like suffering. It's hard to do.

00:32:45.750 --> 00:32:48.049
It's not easy. And you really got to put work

00:32:48.049 --> 00:32:50.910
into it. So if you're just getting, you know,

00:32:50.910 --> 00:32:53.569
AI to do things like that, how quickly are you

00:32:53.569 --> 00:32:55.589
going to lose your skills? Not just lose your

00:32:55.589 --> 00:32:57.869
skills. But what does that trickle down effect,

00:32:57.990 --> 00:32:59.490
like you just said, what does that trickle down

00:32:59.490 --> 00:33:02.869
effect look like in the next generation of humans

00:33:02.869 --> 00:33:06.150
and the human generation after that? Do we lose

00:33:06.150 --> 00:33:09.970
the ability to write altogether in the next two

00:33:09.970 --> 00:33:12.809
generations? And how sad does that sound? So

00:33:12.809 --> 00:33:17.750
like, again, yeah, be cautious. There's a lot

00:33:17.750 --> 00:33:21.509
of people smarter than me putting caution to

00:33:21.509 --> 00:33:23.789
using AI out there and really trying to educate

00:33:23.789 --> 00:33:26.900
people on it. But from my own experience, I try

00:33:26.900 --> 00:33:31.359
to use it as a tool, not as a crutch, but just

00:33:31.359 --> 00:33:35.200
as a tool, as a help me organize or, you know,

00:33:35.200 --> 00:33:38.920
prompt an idea, but then take actual physical

00:33:38.920 --> 00:33:42.480
time myself and mental time myself to write about

00:33:42.480 --> 00:33:44.319
that. I'm using the writing example again or

00:33:44.319 --> 00:33:46.319
whatever your example is, but take time to do

00:33:46.319 --> 00:33:50.259
it yourself, you know. that that's the best advice

00:33:50.259 --> 00:33:52.579
i could give around that is like just don't let

00:33:52.579 --> 00:33:56.119
your skills and your human creativity and your

00:33:56.119 --> 00:34:00.160
human skills atrophy because ai can do it better

00:34:00.160 --> 00:34:05.220
i'm totally paraphrasing but i saw not a meme

00:34:05.220 --> 00:34:09.440
but a post um and it said some something to the

00:34:09.440 --> 00:34:14.719
effect of a i'm told that ai will give me more

00:34:14.719 --> 00:34:17.559
time for washing dishes and making beds or something

00:34:17.559 --> 00:34:21.079
like that. He said, I want AI to wash dishes

00:34:21.079 --> 00:34:23.539
and make my bed so I have more time to write

00:34:23.539 --> 00:34:25.800
and paint. Something to that effect. And they're

00:34:25.800 --> 00:34:28.699
absolutely right. Someone literally on the show

00:34:28.699 --> 00:34:30.900
a while ago, Lee, told me, you know what, you

00:34:30.900 --> 00:34:33.019
can plug in exactly like you said and AI can

00:34:33.019 --> 00:34:34.539
help you write the book and you can tweak some

00:34:34.539 --> 00:34:36.559
things. And I'm like, I can't think of anything

00:34:36.559 --> 00:34:39.340
worse than what you just said to me. And based

00:34:39.340 --> 00:34:41.480
on the emails we were talking before we hit record

00:34:41.480 --> 00:34:45.329
that I get, from podcast companies that connect

00:34:45.329 --> 00:34:49.769
potential guests with podcasts, if that's the

00:34:49.769 --> 00:34:53.010
height of AI writing, then I have nothing to

00:34:53.010 --> 00:34:54.989
worry about whatsoever because it is absolute

00:34:54.989 --> 00:34:59.230
dog shit. But as you said, you know, using AI

00:34:59.230 --> 00:35:02.230
for the kind of admin side of it. Yeah. And there's

00:35:02.230 --> 00:35:04.630
an AI infused element to the promo videos that

00:35:04.630 --> 00:35:07.949
I make. It searches like a 20 minute segment.

00:35:07.969 --> 00:35:10.760
I give it and it pulls out, you know. 92nd month.

00:35:10.800 --> 00:35:12.940
Great. Awesome. The editing that I use now is

00:35:12.940 --> 00:35:16.199
AI helped. Fantastic. But from the creativity,

00:35:16.460 --> 00:35:18.760
you know, when, what I get from the books is

00:35:18.760 --> 00:35:20.679
like, dude, it was, it was like, I was right

00:35:20.679 --> 00:35:23.500
back there on, on the road. And you could tell

00:35:23.500 --> 00:35:25.780
it was written by someone who's there. Now there's

00:35:25.780 --> 00:35:28.300
only a handful really of firefighter biographies

00:35:28.300 --> 00:35:30.340
out there, full stop, or, you know, firefighter

00:35:30.340 --> 00:35:33.079
writing, put it that way. So I think this is

00:35:33.079 --> 00:35:36.960
it is use AI for the stuff that. We don't need

00:35:36.960 --> 00:35:39.019
humans anymore. Humans don't even want to do

00:35:39.019 --> 00:35:42.280
it. And I think that robotics, where we had human

00:35:42.280 --> 00:35:44.559
beings awake throughout the night when they should

00:35:44.559 --> 00:35:47.079
have been in bed with their families, sticking

00:35:47.079 --> 00:35:50.840
labels on tin cans, absolutely. Robots all day

00:35:50.840 --> 00:35:54.059
long. And then allow humans to then be more creative

00:35:54.059 --> 00:35:55.880
and do exactly like you said, the things that

00:35:55.880 --> 00:35:59.179
human beings need to do. And fire and EMS and

00:35:59.179 --> 00:36:01.940
law enforcement, that's where you need to have

00:36:01.940 --> 00:36:04.780
that compassion and empathy that you can't program

00:36:04.780 --> 00:36:09.269
into. you know, a robot or AI. So yeah, I think

00:36:09.269 --> 00:36:12.250
there's a very nuanced conversation. But I think

00:36:12.250 --> 00:36:14.230
sometimes we focus on the wrong thing. You don't

00:36:14.230 --> 00:36:17.369
want AI to be creative. You know, that creativity

00:36:17.369 --> 00:36:19.590
and that learning, like you said, is important

00:36:19.590 --> 00:36:21.730
for the development of the human being. That's

00:36:21.730 --> 00:36:24.070
how we have innovation. But all the things that

00:36:24.070 --> 00:36:26.590
are mundane that we all cringe doing, that's

00:36:26.590 --> 00:36:31.809
where AI superpower is. Don't buy back your time.

00:36:32.409 --> 00:36:34.590
you know to use a quote from dan martell don't

00:36:34.590 --> 00:36:38.389
buy back your time just to spend it doing nothing

00:36:38.389 --> 00:36:43.730
like that again is why it's so important to get

00:36:43.730 --> 00:36:46.210
right physically get right mentally you know

00:36:46.210 --> 00:36:48.090
all these things like what's what's your priorities

00:36:48.090 --> 00:36:50.150
what's your intentions in life what's your goals

00:36:50.150 --> 00:36:52.190
what do you want to do and if you're going to

00:36:52.190 --> 00:36:54.909
use ai to buy back your time which you most certainly

00:36:54.909 --> 00:36:57.829
should it's a great powerful tool but then yeah

00:36:57.829 --> 00:37:01.920
go create the art go You know, spend time, spend

00:37:01.920 --> 00:37:04.940
the morning drinking coffee with your wife and

00:37:04.940 --> 00:37:08.800
your kids. You know, don't go use that time that

00:37:08.800 --> 00:37:11.360
you've just bought back to go do something completely

00:37:11.360 --> 00:37:14.320
stupid or useless or, you know, waste it. Just

00:37:14.320 --> 00:37:19.329
live it. Absolutely. Well, one more kind of area

00:37:19.329 --> 00:37:20.909
that I want to get to your transition. But as

00:37:20.909 --> 00:37:24.250
we sit here now, a massive winter storm is sweeping

00:37:24.250 --> 00:37:27.070
the US, you know, even down here in Florida.

00:37:27.130 --> 00:37:28.750
I think this weekend we're going to be in the

00:37:28.750 --> 00:37:31.989
20s at night, maybe even the high teens, which

00:37:31.989 --> 00:37:35.110
for us is, you know, is pretty crazy. But, you

00:37:35.110 --> 00:37:36.670
know, we talked about hurricanes. That's a very

00:37:36.670 --> 00:37:39.210
horror Florida specific thing. And I think linemen

00:37:39.210 --> 00:37:41.369
really do get a lot of appreciation in the summer

00:37:41.369 --> 00:37:44.300
months here because I've been. I've been there

00:37:44.300 --> 00:37:46.400
many times driving towards a storm on the way

00:37:46.400 --> 00:37:48.840
to a fire station, and it's just me and then

00:37:48.840 --> 00:37:51.900
a line of lineman trucks and first responder

00:37:51.900 --> 00:37:54.739
vehicles heading into the storm. So we actually

00:37:54.739 --> 00:37:58.320
get to see it firsthand. Texas had that crazy

00:37:58.320 --> 00:38:02.480
ice storm a few years ago that absolutely destroyed

00:38:02.480 --> 00:38:04.360
the state because they just weren't used to it.

00:38:04.780 --> 00:38:07.300
And loss of power obviously was a big part of

00:38:07.300 --> 00:38:10.820
that. So as we sit here now where so much of

00:38:10.820 --> 00:38:13.619
the country is under ice conditions, Talk to

00:38:13.619 --> 00:38:17.239
me about how your community is helping again

00:38:17.239 --> 00:38:19.260
when everyone else is kind of hunkering down

00:38:19.260 --> 00:38:25.239
in their homes. The heart of alignment is truly

00:38:25.239 --> 00:38:32.860
like, it's a service -based profession. A lot

00:38:32.860 --> 00:38:36.139
of us, and this is why it does tie in so nicely

00:38:36.139 --> 00:38:39.199
with veterans and military and first responders,

00:38:39.340 --> 00:38:42.599
is like, it's not the only reason that you...

00:38:42.710 --> 00:38:45.110
join these professions is to serve but it's like

00:38:45.110 --> 00:38:48.409
a the servant heart component of it is definitely

00:38:48.409 --> 00:38:52.750
there like you don't typically become a lineman

00:38:52.750 --> 00:38:56.590
you know just for the money or just for you know

00:38:56.590 --> 00:39:00.190
there are those outliers but most of them have

00:39:00.190 --> 00:39:02.869
a service like a sir a servant heart because

00:39:02.869 --> 00:39:06.690
to be honest like i live in british columbia

00:39:06.690 --> 00:39:10.289
canada i've jumped on airplanes before and within

00:39:10.289 --> 00:39:13.809
24 hours boots on ground in places like connecticut

00:39:13.809 --> 00:39:16.789
after hurricane sandy you know like you you jump

00:39:16.789 --> 00:39:20.750
into the middle of a disaster yet the money is

00:39:20.750 --> 00:39:23.769
great you know the work is is fairly exciting

00:39:23.769 --> 00:39:27.610
but i don't have to do that they don't have to

00:39:27.610 --> 00:39:29.269
do that they don't have to leave their homes

00:39:29.269 --> 00:39:32.230
they don't have to leave their nice job at home

00:39:32.230 --> 00:39:36.170
their family you know to go jump into the middle

00:39:36.170 --> 00:39:39.070
of florida ice storm or the middle of Texas ice

00:39:39.070 --> 00:39:44.349
storm. So they have a real servant heart to them

00:39:44.349 --> 00:39:47.010
and that's what we want to do. We want to come

00:39:47.010 --> 00:39:49.829
in and we want to do our part, do our profession,

00:39:50.110 --> 00:39:53.869
our job to the best of our abilities to help

00:39:53.869 --> 00:39:57.389
people regain some sort of normalcy after these

00:39:57.389 --> 00:40:00.090
natural disasters. That's a big part of it. And

00:40:00.090 --> 00:40:03.110
like I said, the money is really great. like

00:40:03.110 --> 00:40:05.750
i'm not gonna sugarcoat that you do make really

00:40:05.750 --> 00:40:09.469
good money but the conditions suck like i said

00:40:09.469 --> 00:40:13.769
you're living in man camps um eating you know

00:40:13.769 --> 00:40:18.510
powdered eggs and no like not very good bacon

00:40:18.510 --> 00:40:22.909
like every day for 20 days in a row and i don't

00:40:22.909 --> 00:40:24.469
know that stuff wears on you man like the long

00:40:24.469 --> 00:40:27.090
days long hours you're away from your family

00:40:27.090 --> 00:40:30.960
like all of those things stack up and So like

00:40:30.960 --> 00:40:32.699
when it really comes down to it and then they

00:40:32.699 --> 00:40:33.960
just want to help people, they want to put that

00:40:33.960 --> 00:40:36.320
light switch back on for you. They want to turn

00:40:36.320 --> 00:40:39.539
that oxygen tank back on to that old lady that

00:40:39.539 --> 00:40:42.440
lives down at the end of that road, you know,

00:40:42.440 --> 00:40:45.579
and really needs that back on or that hospital

00:40:45.579 --> 00:40:51.519
or turn that feeder on and watch 128 ,000 homes

00:40:51.519 --> 00:40:56.340
light up. You know, that's what drives most of

00:40:56.340 --> 00:40:59.320
us is, is that there's a real thrill to that.

00:40:59.719 --> 00:41:01.960
But there's also just like that, hey, I want

00:41:01.960 --> 00:41:05.099
to do my part and do what I was trained to do

00:41:05.099 --> 00:41:11.820
to help people. Talk to me just about how the

00:41:11.820 --> 00:41:15.219
weather impacts the wires themselves. Because

00:41:15.219 --> 00:41:18.900
I mean, obviously, if there's a massive snowstorm,

00:41:18.980 --> 00:41:21.679
I can see how ice would accumulate. But it seems

00:41:21.679 --> 00:41:24.559
like the wires go down a lot during these freeze

00:41:24.559 --> 00:41:27.539
events. So what is the physics behind it, if

00:41:27.539 --> 00:41:32.800
you like? Sure. I'd say a couple things. So when

00:41:32.800 --> 00:41:35.780
it gets cold, heaters go on, right? So there's

00:41:35.780 --> 00:41:37.780
like a load or when it gets, you know, when it

00:41:37.780 --> 00:41:41.199
gets really hot in the reverse, everyone fires

00:41:41.199 --> 00:41:43.079
up their air conditioner. So like there's a load

00:41:43.079 --> 00:41:46.019
component to it. Load meaning like electrical

00:41:46.019 --> 00:41:50.440
demand load. And that does a lot of things because

00:41:50.440 --> 00:41:54.340
each of these components like the wire. uh not

00:41:54.340 --> 00:41:56.900
to get too nerdy but like like the wire have

00:41:56.900 --> 00:41:59.139
a certain resistance factor to them like it's

00:41:59.139 --> 00:42:01.059
just like you know like the wires on the inside

00:42:01.059 --> 00:42:03.000
of a toaster you flick a toaster on you see they're

00:42:03.000 --> 00:42:05.300
all burning hot the same thing's essentially

00:42:05.300 --> 00:42:08.760
happening if you increase the load you know it

00:42:08.760 --> 00:42:11.340
increases the temperature of things like the

00:42:11.340 --> 00:42:14.440
wire or just other components and where you get

00:42:14.440 --> 00:42:18.960
temperature you get risk factor in um things

00:42:18.960 --> 00:42:21.760
malfunctioning you know it really tests the outer

00:42:21.760 --> 00:42:25.070
capabilities of these electrical components.

00:42:25.349 --> 00:42:28.750
All right. So that you could find, you could

00:42:28.750 --> 00:42:32.670
identify real quick what's, what was ready to

00:42:32.670 --> 00:42:35.050
blow up and what wasn't by, you know, testing

00:42:35.050 --> 00:42:37.329
it to its limits, right? So flicking on all your

00:42:37.329 --> 00:42:39.110
air conditioners or all your heaters really tests

00:42:39.110 --> 00:42:42.210
the limits. So that causes outages. Then you

00:42:42.210 --> 00:42:45.130
have things like, obviously like wind is just

00:42:45.130 --> 00:42:48.929
going to blow stuff down. Ice is going to increase

00:42:48.929 --> 00:42:52.530
the weight load. So everything is designed, engineered.

00:42:53.130 --> 00:42:58.230
to withstand some normal uh outside the limits

00:42:58.230 --> 00:43:02.070
of what's normal for you know a conductor and

00:43:02.070 --> 00:43:05.250
a pole a structure to take load bearing wise

00:43:05.250 --> 00:43:08.110
but if you start you know even a little bit of

00:43:08.110 --> 00:43:12.309
ice around a wire you know for a considerable

00:43:12.309 --> 00:43:16.269
distance is a huge amount of weight that you

00:43:16.269 --> 00:43:20.530
can see you see wires droop down and it can wreck

00:43:20.530 --> 00:43:23.699
stuff pretty easy destroy you know bring down

00:43:23.699 --> 00:43:25.780
wires bring down poles bring because everything's

00:43:25.780 --> 00:43:29.579
made of wood too right wood steel but for the

00:43:29.579 --> 00:43:31.820
most part all of these little we call them distribution

00:43:31.820 --> 00:43:34.840
circuits that's the lower voltage that's distributed

00:43:34.840 --> 00:43:38.000
around like cities and towns in your neighborhoods

00:43:38.000 --> 00:43:42.360
are wood pole construction and wood cross arms

00:43:42.360 --> 00:43:44.400
those beams you see at the top that hold the

00:43:44.400 --> 00:43:48.260
hold the wires that's all just wood and a lot

00:43:48.260 --> 00:43:50.639
of that wood too has been in the ground or been

00:43:50.639 --> 00:43:54.559
up in the air for 60 years And so, yeah, it's,

00:43:54.559 --> 00:43:56.920
it's at its limits already. So you add things

00:43:56.920 --> 00:44:00.579
like the weight from ice or, you know, just wind

00:44:00.579 --> 00:44:04.480
blowing things for an amount of time. It just

00:44:04.480 --> 00:44:06.500
brings stuff down and it brings stuff down fast.

00:44:06.579 --> 00:44:09.019
It's almost that domino effect too. Like once

00:44:09.019 --> 00:44:11.719
one thing starts to fall, it pulls the next thing

00:44:11.719 --> 00:44:16.269
down. So you get that, that effect as well. I

00:44:16.269 --> 00:44:17.969
hadn't think about just the length of the wire

00:44:17.969 --> 00:44:19.769
and a little bit of ice. I mean, that makes a

00:44:19.769 --> 00:44:21.670
lot of sense too. And then, like you said, just

00:44:21.670 --> 00:44:23.789
the load, if something's, you know, at near capacity

00:44:23.789 --> 00:44:26.250
and you get, you know, you just get this massive

00:44:26.250 --> 00:44:28.889
surge, I could see how that would factor in.

00:44:28.969 --> 00:44:32.510
As far as the wood, is it still the lack of conductivity

00:44:32.510 --> 00:44:35.510
that you keep using wood or is it also just inexpensive

00:44:35.510 --> 00:44:41.309
still? It's inexpensive. It's not lack of conductivity.

00:44:41.469 --> 00:44:43.940
Like they're actually wood pulp. Wood poles can

00:44:43.940 --> 00:44:46.699
be very conductive because a lot of them get

00:44:46.699 --> 00:44:50.300
treated with a treatment like an anti -rot treatment,

00:44:50.440 --> 00:44:53.760
like copper naftanate is like the green ones

00:44:53.760 --> 00:44:57.619
or creosote is another treatment, wood pole treatment.

00:44:57.679 --> 00:45:00.239
So that stuff can make those poles very conductive.

00:45:00.860 --> 00:45:04.139
uh the insulators so they'll be like porcelain

00:45:04.139 --> 00:45:07.199
insulators or now they use a lot of poly or rubber

00:45:07.199 --> 00:45:10.719
insulation and fiberglass inside that sort of

00:45:10.719 --> 00:45:14.079
thing too and glass even uh to insulate the conductor

00:45:14.079 --> 00:45:17.480
from the pole which would be the ground potential

00:45:17.480 --> 00:45:21.059
um so they use a lot of of that sort of stuff

00:45:21.059 --> 00:45:24.780
so the reason they still use wood is uh price

00:45:24.780 --> 00:45:28.219
and it's just ease of use as well a lot of the

00:45:28.219 --> 00:45:32.909
times We have to manipulate the positioning of

00:45:32.909 --> 00:45:35.550
something like a cross arm or some sort of apparatus

00:45:35.550 --> 00:45:38.869
that gets bolted to that wood. And it's a lot

00:45:38.869 --> 00:45:42.130
easier to just take a nice Milwaukee drill and

00:45:42.130 --> 00:45:44.469
drill a couple holes in wood, put your bolts

00:45:44.469 --> 00:45:46.849
on and bolt that apparatus or equipment to the

00:45:46.849 --> 00:45:51.090
pole versus drilling steel or fiberglass or something,

00:45:51.170 --> 00:45:55.170
some other material. Just ease of use for people

00:45:55.170 --> 00:45:58.739
is wood is just the most. easy thing to use and

00:45:58.739 --> 00:46:02.599
resourceful it grows you know in forests it's

00:46:02.599 --> 00:46:05.860
it's we can come by it very easily or more easily

00:46:05.860 --> 00:46:09.940
in america north america some countries don't

00:46:09.940 --> 00:46:12.539
have that privilege so they will use steel or

00:46:12.539 --> 00:46:15.280
fiberglass or other materials but in north america

00:46:15.280 --> 00:46:17.099
we use a lot of wood just because it is ease

00:46:17.099 --> 00:46:20.599
of use you know cost that sort of thing I'm so

00:46:20.599 --> 00:46:22.960
glad they asked that because I didn't realize

00:46:22.960 --> 00:46:26.280
how conductive the treatments are. So from a

00:46:26.280 --> 00:46:28.820
first responder profession perspective, that's

00:46:28.820 --> 00:46:30.980
good for us to know like, hey, just because it's

00:46:30.980 --> 00:46:33.539
wood, don't trust the fact that it may actually

00:46:33.539 --> 00:46:39.320
be carrying a current. You see this a lot on

00:46:39.320 --> 00:46:44.360
storm calls as well. You'll see homeowners that

00:46:44.360 --> 00:46:46.840
you'll show up to their residence. There'll be

00:46:46.840 --> 00:46:50.219
a wire come across their driveway. And they've

00:46:50.219 --> 00:46:53.280
taken a two by four and they've notched the top

00:46:53.280 --> 00:46:55.659
of it and they've stuck it under the wire and

00:46:55.659 --> 00:46:58.559
they've propped up that wire across their driveway

00:46:58.559 --> 00:47:01.480
so they can get underneath of it. You're literally

00:47:01.480 --> 00:47:04.840
risking your life by doing that. If that two

00:47:04.840 --> 00:47:07.800
by four is fresh from the store and it's dry

00:47:07.800 --> 00:47:12.699
and it's not treated with anything, you've reduced

00:47:12.699 --> 00:47:15.820
your risks. It's a little less resistant, but

00:47:15.820 --> 00:47:19.639
there's still... There's still some abilities

00:47:19.639 --> 00:47:22.579
to track some current there. And to give a lot

00:47:22.579 --> 00:47:26.360
of people perspective, it takes 0 .05 milliamps

00:47:26.360 --> 00:47:32.780
to stop the human heart. 0 .05 milliamps. It

00:47:32.780 --> 00:47:36.199
takes, what, 15 amps to run your toaster. So

00:47:36.199 --> 00:47:39.940
it doesn't take a lot of current to stop your

00:47:39.940 --> 00:47:42.489
heart. you're really just like you're you're

00:47:42.489 --> 00:47:45.989
playing with uh you're playing roulette by doing

00:47:45.989 --> 00:47:48.769
things like that and yes for first responders

00:47:48.769 --> 00:47:52.989
i know you guys get training on this but just

00:47:52.989 --> 00:47:56.690
please like it's it's it's not worth trying to

00:47:56.690 --> 00:48:00.010
uh it's not worth risking your life to to try

00:48:00.010 --> 00:48:03.070
to deal with a down power line a down conductor

00:48:03.070 --> 00:48:05.829
uh situation like that i know you guys get lots

00:48:05.829 --> 00:48:08.210
of training on that and you're you know i'm preaching

00:48:08.210 --> 00:48:11.949
to the choir here but just let a professional

00:48:11.949 --> 00:48:15.070
like let us come in and just let you know that

00:48:15.070 --> 00:48:17.969
it's safe put a set of grounding equipment on

00:48:17.969 --> 00:48:21.090
that so that we've we've tested it you know switched

00:48:21.090 --> 00:48:23.769
it off tested it and then grounded it to make

00:48:23.769 --> 00:48:26.429
it safe and then you know you guys can go do

00:48:26.429 --> 00:48:28.869
your thing yeah don't risk your life to do that

00:48:28.869 --> 00:48:34.289
i know i think it was anaheim we had hot gloves

00:48:34.289 --> 00:48:38.980
and the stick um but again not A huge amount

00:48:38.980 --> 00:48:41.059
of training. When I went to Orange County, we

00:48:41.059 --> 00:48:44.880
had a snake stick and no training on what to

00:48:44.880 --> 00:48:47.780
do. I worked on an engine that we responded to

00:48:47.780 --> 00:48:49.820
the airport. We never had any training on what

00:48:49.820 --> 00:48:52.559
would happen if we actually had to go into a

00:48:52.559 --> 00:48:55.260
plane. So that's a dangerous area when you have

00:48:55.260 --> 00:48:57.159
the equipment, but you don't have a good level

00:48:57.159 --> 00:49:00.460
of training to go with it. A lot of times, too,

00:49:00.559 --> 00:49:03.460
is what people don't realize is like, OK, this

00:49:03.460 --> 00:49:07.869
conductor or wire is down and it's. it's touching

00:49:07.869 --> 00:49:10.969
the ground if that wire is still energized and

00:49:10.969 --> 00:49:14.889
putting energy into the ground it disperses in

00:49:14.889 --> 00:49:19.250
a radius and as that radius expands the voltage

00:49:19.250 --> 00:49:23.329
drops across that radius right across the distance

00:49:23.329 --> 00:49:28.389
so for for current again not to get too nerdy

00:49:28.389 --> 00:49:31.150
but for current to flow so for current to flow

00:49:31.150 --> 00:49:34.429
and stop your heart you need a difference in

00:49:34.429 --> 00:49:36.789
potential difference in voltage you can create

00:49:36.789 --> 00:49:39.969
that with your legs by just having your legs

00:49:39.969 --> 00:49:42.869
two feet apart one foot on the ground in front

00:49:42.869 --> 00:49:45.130
one foot behind you've created the difference

00:49:45.130 --> 00:49:47.769
in potential because there's a voltage drop across

00:49:47.769 --> 00:49:50.230
that that could be enough to stop your heart

00:49:50.230 --> 00:49:51.929
so what i'm getting at is like you don't have

00:49:51.929 --> 00:49:54.250
to actually be touching the wire or right beside

00:49:54.250 --> 00:49:57.250
the wire you could be up to 10 feet away from

00:49:57.250 --> 00:50:00.570
that and still have enough voltage drop across

00:50:00.570 --> 00:50:04.510
your legs From having your feet apart or having

00:50:04.510 --> 00:50:06.750
your hand touching something and your feet on

00:50:06.750 --> 00:50:10.610
the ground, that creates that circuit. That connects

00:50:10.610 --> 00:50:13.409
that series circuit and allows electricity to

00:50:13.409 --> 00:50:16.329
flow or could allow electricity to flow. That's

00:50:16.329 --> 00:50:17.829
what's so dangerous about it too. And you can't

00:50:17.829 --> 00:50:20.969
see that stuff. But it's very much present. It

00:50:20.969 --> 00:50:26.670
could be present and it could be there. You had

00:50:26.670 --> 00:50:30.239
mentioned before we hit record about... veterans

00:50:30.239 --> 00:50:33.280
and first responders transitioning out of their

00:50:33.280 --> 00:50:36.420
professions and into line work. And I think this

00:50:36.420 --> 00:50:39.460
is a great place to put this in. Talk to me about

00:50:39.460 --> 00:50:43.739
what you're seeing as far as the same kind of

00:50:43.739 --> 00:50:47.920
attributes in uniform being applicable into your

00:50:47.920 --> 00:50:52.139
trade. 100%. I love this topic. I had firsthand

00:50:52.139 --> 00:50:54.760
experience with it. I'm not a veteran myself,

00:50:54.900 --> 00:50:58.940
but like I said, I was a lead instructor. for

00:50:58.940 --> 00:51:01.679
a line school uh i've been a lineman power lineman

00:51:01.679 --> 00:51:07.019
since 2000 um second generation like i said um

00:51:07.019 --> 00:51:09.980
it was a passion of mine very passionate about

00:51:09.980 --> 00:51:12.079
the about the career about the job i don't i

00:51:12.079 --> 00:51:15.260
don't i'm not on the tools anymore per se like

00:51:15.260 --> 00:51:18.360
yourself not not executing the the profession

00:51:18.360 --> 00:51:20.219
every day but still very passionate about it

00:51:20.219 --> 00:51:24.920
because um it's a very great career so uh I was

00:51:24.920 --> 00:51:27.019
a lead instructor for this line school and I

00:51:27.019 --> 00:51:31.099
helped get a lot of veterans into the line school

00:51:31.099 --> 00:51:34.639
and then onto a career in the line trade. And

00:51:34.639 --> 00:51:38.420
a lot of things I noticed was how incredibly,

00:51:38.460 --> 00:51:42.199
how incredible it was for transitioning vets,

00:51:42.219 --> 00:51:46.460
meaning the careers very much aligned. So when

00:51:46.460 --> 00:51:47.780
you come out of the, when you come out of the

00:51:47.780 --> 00:51:49.960
military service and you come into civilian life,

00:51:50.099 --> 00:51:53.369
you don't always have a direction. You need a

00:51:53.369 --> 00:51:55.250
new purpose. You're trying to find your career,

00:51:55.429 --> 00:51:58.349
all this and that. And again, there's not enough

00:51:58.349 --> 00:52:01.409
awareness of the power line industry, the trades,

00:52:01.530 --> 00:52:04.230
but the power line industry as a potential option.

00:52:05.010 --> 00:52:08.309
So I started coming up with a list of reasons

00:52:08.309 --> 00:52:11.190
why they work so well together. So I'll just

00:52:11.190 --> 00:52:14.010
read a couple of the things off the list. So

00:52:14.010 --> 00:52:16.650
that mission first mindset, like I kind of touched

00:52:16.650 --> 00:52:20.550
on and talked about. Linework is a service. We

00:52:20.550 --> 00:52:23.130
restore power, protect the public, keep hospitals

00:52:23.130 --> 00:52:25.969
water, communications running. That purpose under

00:52:25.969 --> 00:52:29.030
pressure is very familiar in both sides, both

00:52:29.030 --> 00:52:34.110
for linework and for ex -military. That comfort

00:52:34.110 --> 00:52:37.690
operating in risk, but not just risk, but risk

00:52:37.690 --> 00:52:40.369
with discipline. So like think training, right?

00:52:40.489 --> 00:52:43.829
The best operators aren't just thrill seekers.

00:52:43.929 --> 00:52:46.820
Yes, you know. A lot of us are thrill seekers,

00:52:46.960 --> 00:52:50.000
just like operators, but they're procedure driven.

00:52:50.199 --> 00:52:53.360
So vets and first responders already live in

00:52:53.360 --> 00:52:56.480
checklist protocols and risk management, right?

00:52:56.559 --> 00:52:59.039
That's the world they live in. Very similar to

00:52:59.039 --> 00:53:03.400
us as well. Team -based execution. So crews function

00:53:03.400 --> 00:53:06.639
like units. Roles are defined. Communication

00:53:06.639 --> 00:53:10.800
is tight. And trust matters. You build that brotherhood,

00:53:10.800 --> 00:53:15.820
sisterhood. We live, breathe, work with these

00:53:15.820 --> 00:53:19.059
people every day in a tight, you know, sometimes

00:53:19.059 --> 00:53:21.880
life and death scenarios. Really, when you're

00:53:21.880 --> 00:53:24.900
dealing with electricity, electricity, heights,

00:53:25.239 --> 00:53:28.059
traffic, heavy equipment. These are some of the

00:53:28.059 --> 00:53:29.820
things we deal with when you're in those environments.

00:53:31.139 --> 00:53:33.860
You know, you build that brotherhood, sisterhood

00:53:33.860 --> 00:53:36.360
that you might not get from an accounting firm,

00:53:36.440 --> 00:53:41.239
you know. Shift work, call outs, nights, long

00:53:41.239 --> 00:53:43.239
storms, all those things we talked about. We

00:53:43.239 --> 00:53:46.260
live in a chain of command as well. Chain of

00:53:46.260 --> 00:53:48.039
command is very familiar with the military. Obviously,

00:53:48.159 --> 00:53:50.599
we live in that sort of an environment as well.

00:53:51.260 --> 00:53:53.840
Physical, mental toughness. We talked about that

00:53:53.840 --> 00:53:56.820
sort of thing already as well. And then after

00:53:56.820 --> 00:54:01.329
action, learning and culture debriefs. are 100

00:54:01.329 --> 00:54:04.409
% part of what we do. We'll go through and execute

00:54:04.409 --> 00:54:08.170
a job during the day, end of the day, do a debrief

00:54:08.170 --> 00:54:10.929
on what went right, what went wrong, what can

00:54:10.929 --> 00:54:13.389
we change, all of those sorts of things. So a

00:54:13.389 --> 00:54:16.429
lot of familiarities and it's like a natural

00:54:16.429 --> 00:54:22.010
job progression for vets to go into line work.

00:54:23.710 --> 00:54:25.769
We were talking as well before we hit record

00:54:25.769 --> 00:54:28.969
and this is really interesting because I saw

00:54:30.000 --> 00:54:32.440
a piece i think it was in the wall street journal

00:54:32.440 --> 00:54:36.019
and it was saying that gen z are leaning into

00:54:36.019 --> 00:54:38.940
the trades more now than ever and when i took

00:54:38.940 --> 00:54:41.039
a step back i was like let me think about this

00:54:41.039 --> 00:54:43.239
because they're not leaning into police fire

00:54:43.239 --> 00:54:46.559
and ems at the moment and if you think about

00:54:46.559 --> 00:54:49.139
the information that they have available we just

00:54:49.139 --> 00:54:51.980
talked about chat gbt for example and i tell

00:54:51.980 --> 00:54:54.460
you now if you go to google and google is it

00:54:54.460 --> 00:54:57.139
healthy to be a firefighter buckle up because

00:54:57.139 --> 00:55:00.039
it's not going to be pretty So the information

00:55:00.039 --> 00:55:02.260
is out there full stop. But then also what you

00:55:02.260 --> 00:55:04.800
can do is go online and go, is it worth getting

00:55:04.800 --> 00:55:07.900
a degree? And AI will spit out, well, hey, it's

00:55:07.900 --> 00:55:10.000
going to probably cost you $60 ,000. You have

00:55:10.000 --> 00:55:12.960
a piece of paper that doesn't guarantee you any

00:55:12.960 --> 00:55:15.940
sort of job whatsoever. And so then you look

00:55:15.940 --> 00:55:17.400
at the trades and the kids are like, well, what

00:55:17.400 --> 00:55:21.440
about linemen? What about plumber, electrician?

00:55:21.929 --> 00:55:23.409
And they go, well, yeah, we just go to community

00:55:23.409 --> 00:55:25.510
college, you know, go to trade school. And then

00:55:25.510 --> 00:55:28.030
a year, two, three years later, there'll be people

00:55:28.030 --> 00:55:30.309
just, you know, waiting to gobble you up, basically,

00:55:30.309 --> 00:55:33.849
because it's in high demand. So it makes perfect

00:55:33.849 --> 00:55:36.130
sense to me that that's the case here. And I

00:55:36.130 --> 00:55:38.650
think it's exciting because the things that are

00:55:38.650 --> 00:55:41.829
turning people's heads in the fire service isn't

00:55:41.829 --> 00:55:44.380
the job. It's the working environment. And I'm

00:55:44.380 --> 00:55:46.280
sure you and I even spoke about this years ago.

00:55:46.460 --> 00:55:48.619
You know, our work weeks are insane and it's

00:55:48.619 --> 00:55:51.780
only got worse. So now the amount of vacancies

00:55:51.780 --> 00:55:55.559
that remain unfilled means we're forcing whoever's

00:55:55.559 --> 00:55:58.320
in the uniform as it is to work those shifts.

00:55:58.360 --> 00:56:00.059
And no, you can't go home. You've got to work

00:56:00.059 --> 00:56:02.719
yet another 24 hour shift. And these young people

00:56:02.719 --> 00:56:05.159
are hearing about that, these insane work weeks,

00:56:05.300 --> 00:56:08.219
the physical ill health, the mental ill health,

00:56:08.320 --> 00:56:10.960
and it's turning them away from our profession.

00:56:11.610 --> 00:56:14.070
You fix those elements like Pasco County just

00:56:14.070 --> 00:56:18.349
did two days ago and they became 2472 fully staffed

00:56:18.349 --> 00:56:20.809
fire department. They have a line out the door

00:56:20.809 --> 00:56:23.789
for people wanting to work for them. So, you

00:56:23.789 --> 00:56:25.650
know, that leaning into the trades that I hear

00:56:25.650 --> 00:56:28.050
about, I think is exciting news for our first

00:56:28.050 --> 00:56:31.550
responder professions. As long as we unfuck the

00:56:31.550 --> 00:56:34.269
things that we have completely fucked up for

00:56:34.269 --> 00:56:38.130
the last 10, 15, 20 years and acknowledge that

00:56:38.130 --> 00:56:41.420
we have an issue and fix those problems. Talk

00:56:41.420 --> 00:56:45.820
to me about this Gen Z generation and your population,

00:56:45.820 --> 00:56:48.579
and then let's expand, as we were talking about

00:56:48.579 --> 00:56:53.300
earlier, as far as the threat to the trades because

00:56:53.300 --> 00:57:00.659
of organizations within Canada itself. I love

00:57:00.659 --> 00:57:03.420
hearing that. I've just been recently hearing

00:57:03.420 --> 00:57:06.639
that as well about Gen Z, and I love that for

00:57:06.639 --> 00:57:09.500
them. I love that for us. that they're actually

00:57:09.500 --> 00:57:14.099
like, like my son, prime example of that. This

00:57:14.099 --> 00:57:18.500
is a kid that like myself, just, you know, the

00:57:18.500 --> 00:57:21.880
school system, if you start way back then the

00:57:21.880 --> 00:57:25.059
school system isn't for everyone. We all know

00:57:25.059 --> 00:57:26.860
that just like, even like elementary school,

00:57:26.920 --> 00:57:29.940
high school, like it's just not set up for people

00:57:29.940 --> 00:57:32.719
that are, you know, like myself, like a little

00:57:32.719 --> 00:57:36.480
bit ADD, a little bit dyslexic, you know, just

00:57:36.480 --> 00:57:39.559
not really. Left to right learning, you know,

00:57:39.599 --> 00:57:44.239
I came out of high school just like he did, wanting

00:57:44.239 --> 00:57:46.639
to do something different, kind of understanding

00:57:46.639 --> 00:57:50.019
that school, university, college wasn't really

00:57:50.019 --> 00:57:53.349
going to work. for him like if it was it's going

00:57:53.349 --> 00:57:57.329
to be a struggle like it was for me had i luckily

00:57:57.329 --> 00:57:59.829
had my father that introduced me line work because

00:57:59.829 --> 00:58:01.730
he was a lineman so he said why don't you give

00:58:01.730 --> 00:58:04.010
this a try you might actually like it up to that

00:58:04.010 --> 00:58:05.789
point it wasn't something i thought about but

00:58:05.789 --> 00:58:07.530
he just kind of said you know i think you need

00:58:07.530 --> 00:58:10.070
to give this a try as soon as i did it for myself

00:58:10.070 --> 00:58:13.170
i was hooked i was like this is it this is i

00:58:13.170 --> 00:58:14.989
get to be creative every day i get to show up

00:58:14.989 --> 00:58:18.289
on new job sites every day every day is a new

00:58:18.289 --> 00:58:22.500
project you know it's this i get to build this

00:58:22.500 --> 00:58:24.679
brotherhood camaraderie with the people i work

00:58:24.679 --> 00:58:29.260
around it's physical it's outdoors um there's

00:58:29.260 --> 00:58:31.579
it's challenging there's purpose to it there's

00:58:31.579 --> 00:58:33.880
service to it like all of these things if they

00:58:33.880 --> 00:58:36.460
resonate with you and i think that that's what's

00:58:36.460 --> 00:58:39.800
resonating with gen z like i'm so stoked to hear

00:58:39.800 --> 00:58:43.380
that like they don't want to go to college and

00:58:43.380 --> 00:58:47.039
university now be guaranteed nothing and pay

00:58:47.039 --> 00:58:50.219
hundreds of thousands of dollars to do that Like

00:58:50.219 --> 00:58:53.440
it doesn't, they're smarter, they're smarter.

00:58:53.820 --> 00:58:55.820
And if they're not smarter, they're at least

00:58:55.820 --> 00:58:57.800
going to these tools we built for them, like

00:58:57.800 --> 00:59:01.940
AI and going, Hey, tell me realistically about

00:59:01.940 --> 00:59:04.960
this thing. And it just gives them the facts.

00:59:05.000 --> 00:59:07.079
And the facts are, you can't ignore the facts.

00:59:07.119 --> 00:59:09.420
The facts are, it kind of sucks for a lot of

00:59:09.420 --> 00:59:11.199
people, unless you're going to go be the top

00:59:11.199 --> 00:59:13.659
professions, like doctors, lawyers, whatever.

00:59:15.469 --> 00:59:18.110
it's you go into these you pay hundreds of thousands

00:59:18.110 --> 00:59:20.409
of dollars and you're not guaranteed where i

00:59:20.409 --> 00:59:24.349
could choose line work and i don't know a lineman

00:59:24.349 --> 00:59:28.449
that does not make under 120 or doesn't make

00:59:28.449 --> 00:59:33.150
under 120 grand a year like period that's that's

00:59:33.150 --> 00:59:35.070
like those are the ones that aren't like hardly

00:59:35.070 --> 00:59:38.090
working even you know just taking up shifts here

00:59:38.090 --> 00:59:40.469
and there like part -time almost you can scale

00:59:40.469 --> 00:59:43.510
that right up to six eight hundred thousand you

00:59:43.510 --> 00:59:47.019
know that's obviously coming with a lot of overtime

00:59:47.019 --> 00:59:48.840
a lot of other special training all that kind

00:59:48.840 --> 00:59:52.000
of stuff but that exists that's a fact you can

00:59:52.000 --> 00:59:54.820
you can ask chat gbt that question so if you're

00:59:54.820 --> 00:59:56.500
going to go to chat and you're going to ask it

00:59:56.500 --> 00:59:58.780
you know tell me all about the line profession

00:59:58.780 --> 01:00:03.239
tell me what you're going to make get get detailed

01:00:03.239 --> 01:00:05.420
with it don't just take its first answer because

01:00:05.420 --> 01:00:07.639
it'll give you this base rate like you'll make

01:00:07.639 --> 01:00:11.340
50 grand a year as a base rate and that's taking

01:00:11.340 --> 01:00:14.440
into It's taking things into consideration that,

01:00:14.460 --> 01:00:17.000
that real linemen don't even call line work,

01:00:17.039 --> 01:00:21.280
like some small communications line jobs that

01:00:21.280 --> 01:00:23.980
don't, you know, it's not actual power linemen.

01:00:24.000 --> 01:00:26.179
So you need to really say like, what does an

01:00:26.179 --> 01:00:29.119
electrical power lineman, you know, make, or

01:00:29.119 --> 01:00:31.500
what's the range if you're going to start asking

01:00:31.500 --> 01:00:33.219
those questions. But like, I love that for Gen

01:00:33.219 --> 01:00:37.360
Z and I say, heck yeah, like bring it on. we

01:00:37.360 --> 01:00:41.659
need more youth that are like go -getters and

01:00:41.659 --> 01:00:44.119
into doing this. And, you know, another thing

01:00:44.119 --> 01:00:46.920
I noticed about Gen Z too is like, they were

01:00:46.920 --> 01:00:50.500
getting a bad rap for a while, but you know,

01:00:50.519 --> 01:00:52.820
most of the Gen Z that I know and interact with

01:00:52.820 --> 01:00:56.360
on a daily basis, they're doing things like quitting

01:00:56.360 --> 01:00:59.139
alcohol because it doesn't benefit them at all.

01:00:59.199 --> 01:01:01.889
And they're, you know, getting together. drinking

01:01:01.889 --> 01:01:05.429
coffee and having a rave with a rave mixed with

01:01:05.429 --> 01:01:07.150
coffee party, you know, like things like that,

01:01:07.190 --> 01:01:10.510
like love that they're a little more health conscious

01:01:10.510 --> 01:01:15.409
because there's podcasts and there's AI to teach

01:01:15.409 --> 01:01:17.550
them about, you know, how to look after themselves,

01:01:17.730 --> 01:01:19.909
how to build training programs. They're at the

01:01:19.909 --> 01:01:23.070
gym now. Like, I think it's awesome. They're

01:01:23.070 --> 01:01:26.230
a great fit for the trade and I welcome it. Also

01:01:26.230 --> 01:01:31.550
another thing that. Like my generation couldn't

01:01:31.550 --> 01:01:36.530
get away with challenging veteran linemen. So

01:01:36.530 --> 01:01:38.670
linemen or tradesmen that have been in the trade

01:01:38.670 --> 01:01:41.269
for a while, they'll tell you, go do this kid.

01:01:41.590 --> 01:01:43.829
And you'll be like, that doesn't really seem

01:01:43.829 --> 01:01:47.429
right. But you had no way to challenge them because

01:01:47.429 --> 01:01:49.269
they're the ones that have done this for years

01:01:49.269 --> 01:01:51.949
and they're telling you what to do. So just go

01:01:51.949 --> 01:01:55.010
do it. Even though it didn't seem safe or it

01:01:55.010 --> 01:01:57.449
didn't seem like it was a better way to do it.

01:01:58.059 --> 01:02:01.320
but now gen z has these tools available to go

01:02:01.320 --> 01:02:04.820
no like you're you're telling me a bunch of this

01:02:04.820 --> 01:02:08.500
is not the most efficient way to do it and i

01:02:08.500 --> 01:02:10.400
you know i'd like to challenge that or i'd like

01:02:10.400 --> 01:02:12.980
to think about it differently i don't know you

01:02:12.980 --> 01:02:14.519
got to work on your approach there if you're

01:02:14.519 --> 01:02:17.239
gen z and the other way on how you approach those

01:02:17.239 --> 01:02:18.739
combos but at least they're challenging them

01:02:18.739 --> 01:02:20.760
now and they're going no this doesn't seem safe

01:02:20.760 --> 01:02:23.440
this doesn't seem right you know which i think

01:02:23.440 --> 01:02:26.530
is awesome I think the best thing that I'm hearing,

01:02:26.650 --> 01:02:28.949
which I can relate to because this is me too,

01:02:29.010 --> 01:02:30.730
which is probably why I ruffled a lot of feathers

01:02:30.730 --> 01:02:33.989
when I was in certain departments, but is asking

01:02:33.989 --> 01:02:36.610
the question, why? And just a perfect example,

01:02:36.730 --> 01:02:39.650
I just had one of the former training chiefs

01:02:39.650 --> 01:02:42.869
of Chicago Fire on the show. And he was saying,

01:02:42.889 --> 01:02:46.650
we have this one technique where as you're progressing

01:02:46.650 --> 01:02:49.289
into a fire, you're opening windows. And it was

01:02:49.289 --> 01:02:52.050
supposedly to vent and lift the smoke and all

01:02:52.050 --> 01:02:54.619
this stuff. And he goes. Do you know why it actually

01:02:54.619 --> 01:02:59.440
is? And I'm not the fire guru, never put myself

01:02:59.440 --> 01:03:02.320
that way. Love fighting fire, but I was perpetually

01:03:02.320 --> 01:03:05.559
a student. So I'm like, no, but I'm excited to

01:03:05.559 --> 01:03:08.260
hear the real reason. And he said, before we

01:03:08.260 --> 01:03:12.280
even had SCBAs, air tanks, the old salts would

01:03:12.280 --> 01:03:16.460
progress up a hallway. The next window, they'd

01:03:16.460 --> 01:03:18.599
stick their head out, take a couple of breaths,

01:03:18.860 --> 01:03:21.460
put it back in again. And then off they go. Nothing

01:03:21.460 --> 01:03:23.820
to do with... you know, smoke conditions or anything

01:03:23.820 --> 01:03:25.780
else. It was actually just to take a breath.

01:03:26.260 --> 01:03:28.519
So the thing, this is what's exciting now, whether

01:03:28.519 --> 01:03:31.320
it's AI, whether it's just simply, but I love

01:03:31.320 --> 01:03:33.539
the three whys. You talked about Tim Ferriss.

01:03:34.079 --> 01:03:36.880
He had a guy, I think it was an Argentinian businessman.

01:03:37.519 --> 01:03:40.199
And he talked about the three whys that his dad

01:03:40.199 --> 01:03:42.760
had told him. And so you say, you know, well,

01:03:42.800 --> 01:03:44.739
why do we go down the hallway? You know, it's

01:03:44.739 --> 01:03:49.059
because of this. Well, why? And then boom, if

01:03:49.059 --> 01:03:52.000
you fall on the first why, you know. Then all

01:03:52.000 --> 01:03:54.559
of a sudden, okay, well, we need to look at this

01:03:54.559 --> 01:03:57.460
a little closer. And so many things, well, that's

01:03:57.460 --> 01:03:59.179
the way we've always done it. Let's take the

01:03:59.179 --> 01:04:02.099
firefighter work week. Well, why do we work 56

01:04:02.099 --> 01:04:06.460
hours a week when everyone else works 40? The

01:04:06.460 --> 01:04:08.059
answer is literally because we've always done

01:04:08.059 --> 01:04:10.119
it. And it comes from when we used to just fight

01:04:10.119 --> 01:04:13.340
fire 100 years ago. You know what I mean? And

01:04:13.340 --> 01:04:15.039
you could. You'd get a great night's sleep. And

01:04:15.039 --> 01:04:16.780
once in a blue moon, you'd actually go to a fire.

01:04:17.260 --> 01:04:20.400
But why do we do it today? you by the second

01:04:20.400 --> 01:04:22.079
why you're already done you're toast because

01:04:22.079 --> 01:04:25.039
there's no sense behind it whatsoever so i love

01:04:25.039 --> 01:04:26.860
that and i think that's what this younger generation

01:04:26.860 --> 01:04:28.960
are doing and they're like well why why should

01:04:28.960 --> 01:04:31.320
we drink alcohol if it's a poison and it makes

01:04:31.320 --> 01:04:33.280
you know brings your bad side out and blah blah

01:04:33.280 --> 01:04:35.639
blah and you can't drive with it you know why

01:04:35.639 --> 01:04:38.599
don't we just you know do something else instead

01:04:38.599 --> 01:04:42.460
so and they're romanticizing about our childhood

01:04:42.460 --> 01:04:44.559
too and taking a lot of the good things from

01:04:44.559 --> 01:04:47.219
that which i love And even I just saw recently

01:04:47.219 --> 01:04:51.059
there's kind of a craze where they're trying

01:04:51.059 --> 01:04:54.119
to remove filler words because you've got the

01:04:54.119 --> 01:04:56.519
likes and the low keys and all this stuff. And

01:04:56.519 --> 01:04:58.219
I think they're realizing like, hey, we're starting

01:04:58.219 --> 01:05:01.280
to sound pretty dumb now. Maybe we should work

01:05:01.280 --> 01:05:04.460
on our vocabulary and our grammar and our speech

01:05:04.460 --> 01:05:06.539
and be able to really articulate what we're trying

01:05:06.539 --> 01:05:10.039
to say. And because they grew up in this emoji.

01:05:11.119 --> 01:05:13.760
you know, acronym world. So poor kids, no wonder.

01:05:14.179 --> 01:05:16.800
So I'm loving this because they're actually going

01:05:16.800 --> 01:05:19.440
back to the eighties and nineties and going,

01:05:19.539 --> 01:05:21.579
all right, how did you guys do it? My son has

01:05:21.579 --> 01:05:24.360
a record player. Perfect example. You know what

01:05:24.360 --> 01:05:26.460
I mean? So, sorry, I've been kind of gone off

01:05:26.460 --> 01:05:29.400
on a tangent, but to your point, I agree. There's

01:05:29.400 --> 01:05:32.239
a demonizing of, you know, kids today air quotes,

01:05:32.360 --> 01:05:34.719
but I think we need to take a step back and really

01:05:34.719 --> 01:05:36.400
look at that generation because they're doing

01:05:36.400 --> 01:05:38.639
a lot of things right. And they're learning from

01:05:38.639 --> 01:05:42.130
our mistakes. I definitely run a highlighter

01:05:42.130 --> 01:05:45.130
over that communication aspect that you just

01:05:45.130 --> 01:05:48.010
talked about. I love hearing that they're diving

01:05:48.010 --> 01:05:50.329
into communication. I see it on social too. I

01:05:50.329 --> 01:05:53.550
see a lot of people talking about becoming better

01:05:53.550 --> 01:05:56.769
communicators, educating on becoming better communicators.

01:05:57.389 --> 01:05:59.769
uh warren buffett's got a great quote that i'm

01:05:59.769 --> 01:06:02.510
probably paraphrasing but he's saying basically

01:06:02.510 --> 01:06:05.489
if you want to increase the wages your wages

01:06:05.489 --> 01:06:08.130
in any job that you go do just learn how to be

01:06:08.130 --> 01:06:11.389
a better communicator there's 100 truth to that

01:06:11.389 --> 01:06:14.809
that's something that i'd say and i like i said

01:06:14.809 --> 01:06:18.090
again put run a highlighter over it for gen z

01:06:18.090 --> 01:06:22.369
is learn how to become a better communicator

01:06:22.369 --> 01:06:26.320
uh be dealing with that a lot with my own sons

01:06:26.320 --> 01:06:31.619
um they just you know they won't even double

01:06:31.619 --> 01:06:34.039
tap your text message just to let you know that

01:06:34.039 --> 01:06:36.920
you know they received it and they heard it or

01:06:36.920 --> 01:06:38.760
they saw it or they at least read it because

01:06:38.760 --> 01:06:40.780
the read receipts off every you know like so

01:06:40.780 --> 01:06:44.119
like three days later did you even get the text

01:06:44.119 --> 01:06:47.400
oh yeah dad sorry i got it so i've had a lot

01:06:47.400 --> 01:06:49.840
of conversations about them with you know with

01:06:49.840 --> 01:06:52.619
them about just becoming a better communicator

01:06:52.920 --> 01:06:55.639
over communicate let you know especially if you're

01:06:55.639 --> 01:06:58.380
dealing with people like in the workplace um

01:06:58.380 --> 01:07:01.460
they're both going through you know that transition

01:07:01.460 --> 01:07:04.800
into career world and you're going through job

01:07:04.800 --> 01:07:07.099
interviews or talking to people in the workforce

01:07:07.099 --> 01:07:10.539
setting and one of my kids will you know he'll

01:07:10.539 --> 01:07:12.579
send me screenshots of what he's going to send

01:07:12.579 --> 01:07:14.760
out in a text message and i'll just give it a

01:07:14.760 --> 01:07:17.039
little bit of a review which i think is awesome

01:07:17.039 --> 01:07:19.559
now like he's checking in to see Hey, would this

01:07:19.559 --> 01:07:22.059
be a good text to send? And I'm like, well, you

01:07:22.059 --> 01:07:23.400
could change this. You could change that. Just

01:07:23.400 --> 01:07:27.159
offer advice on communicating. So I love that

01:07:27.159 --> 01:07:30.400
they are doing that as well. And yeah, just 100

01:07:30.400 --> 01:07:32.800
% want to run a highlighter over that. Become

01:07:32.800 --> 01:07:35.920
a better communicator and your whole life gets

01:07:35.920 --> 01:07:39.760
easier. Absolutely. And I think this is the exciting

01:07:39.760 --> 01:07:43.039
thing. This generation, as you said, they value

01:07:43.039 --> 01:07:44.900
their physical health. They value their mental

01:07:44.900 --> 01:07:47.000
health. They value their relationships, time

01:07:47.000 --> 01:07:50.860
at home. And so for the fire service, if we,

01:07:50.960 --> 01:07:53.480
which we're seeing now in Florida, invest in

01:07:53.480 --> 01:07:56.639
our people, create healthy work weeks, fill all

01:07:56.639 --> 01:07:58.480
the vacancies because now people want to work

01:07:58.480 --> 01:08:00.800
for you. You are then going to, you know, the

01:08:00.800 --> 01:08:02.880
rising tide lifts all ships. As a profession,

01:08:03.119 --> 01:08:05.139
we're going to go back to the high demand that

01:08:05.139 --> 01:08:07.519
you need in your trade, in my trade. There's

01:08:07.519 --> 01:08:09.820
a certain percentage of the population that can

01:08:09.820 --> 01:08:12.480
really do this job well, and we have to attract

01:08:12.480 --> 01:08:15.320
them. you know and we have you know a thousand

01:08:15.320 --> 01:08:18.159
people apply then you take you know the top 50

01:08:18.159 --> 01:08:19.920
and that's how it should be it's no different

01:08:19.920 --> 01:08:22.119
than a special forces a special operations group

01:08:22.119 --> 01:08:24.939
really because we truly are dealing with life

01:08:24.939 --> 01:08:27.979
and death but where we are now in police and

01:08:27.979 --> 01:08:30.380
fire is is literally going into high schools

01:08:30.380 --> 01:08:35.079
and begging children to come do this thing and

01:08:35.079 --> 01:08:36.539
we'll train you and everything we'll give you

01:08:36.539 --> 01:08:39.600
a hiring bonus and that is not how you do it

01:08:39.600 --> 01:08:42.140
and it doesn't create a love of the job either

01:08:42.140 --> 01:08:44.420
you know there's there's zero skin in the game

01:08:44.420 --> 01:08:47.460
by that point so by fixing the things that we

01:08:47.460 --> 01:08:50.600
have screwed up our you know my population maybe

01:08:50.600 --> 01:08:53.340
my my generation because now at 51 we're talking

01:08:53.340 --> 01:08:55.579
about the chiefs and the union presidents and

01:08:55.579 --> 01:08:58.180
all these other people it's on us this is our

01:08:58.180 --> 01:09:00.720
fault now our forefathers may have created this

01:09:00.720 --> 01:09:03.239
but we're the ones that have to fix it but we

01:09:03.239 --> 01:09:06.279
can turn it around and this gen z the right group

01:09:06.279 --> 01:09:09.380
of this gen z are going to be even better than

01:09:09.380 --> 01:09:11.979
we ever were because they're going in with the

01:09:11.979 --> 01:09:13.680
mental health, with the physical health, with

01:09:13.680 --> 01:09:16.239
the emotional health that we didn't have. We

01:09:16.239 --> 01:09:18.819
went in blindly post 9 -11, just sign me up.

01:09:18.859 --> 01:09:21.279
I want to go do that thing because I want to

01:09:21.279 --> 01:09:24.659
serve. Now, these people understand what that

01:09:24.659 --> 01:09:28.460
takes and they're preparing for it. Young people,

01:09:28.619 --> 01:09:31.680
they ask me all the time, they reach out on social

01:09:31.680 --> 01:09:34.479
or whatever, or just ask in person, what can

01:09:34.479 --> 01:09:39.220
I do to... that would help set me apart to choose

01:09:39.220 --> 01:09:41.899
me in a career like this. And I used to give

01:09:41.899 --> 01:09:45.000
them advice, like do what you can, you know,

01:09:45.000 --> 01:09:47.779
get first aid training, some chainsaw, some rigging

01:09:47.779 --> 01:09:50.279
training, learn some basic electrical theory,

01:09:50.359 --> 01:09:52.579
like all these things that were like, learn what

01:09:52.579 --> 01:09:54.479
you can outside of, you know, getting into the

01:09:54.479 --> 01:09:56.439
career. So you're kind of a little bit prepped

01:09:56.439 --> 01:10:00.119
for it. I've been telling them a lot lately to,

01:10:00.220 --> 01:10:03.760
yeah, all of that's good, but. learn communication

01:10:03.760 --> 01:10:08.100
skills, learn leadership skills, those sorts

01:10:08.100 --> 01:10:12.500
of things will set you immediately apart from

01:10:12.500 --> 01:10:15.140
the pack. And so I'm glad you highlighted that

01:10:15.140 --> 01:10:17.159
because like, yes, communication, leadership

01:10:17.159 --> 01:10:20.020
is another one of those that if the sooner you

01:10:20.020 --> 01:10:23.699
can learn about leadership in high school or

01:10:23.699 --> 01:10:26.239
sooner, like learn how to lead in sports, learn

01:10:26.239 --> 01:10:28.979
how to lead in your class, like take those opportunities

01:10:28.979 --> 01:10:33.060
to practice. Things you learn about leadership

01:10:33.060 --> 01:10:35.880
as you're younger, by the time you're ready to

01:10:35.880 --> 01:10:39.199
hit the workforce, we are in such need of quality

01:10:39.199 --> 01:10:42.560
leadership. And I'm not just talking about managing.

01:10:42.659 --> 01:10:44.520
Managing and leaders is two different things.

01:10:44.699 --> 01:10:47.300
I'm talking about leaders. Like you could throw

01:10:47.300 --> 01:10:51.859
a room full of everybody that is exactly the

01:10:51.859 --> 01:10:55.659
same job title and profession and somebody. ends

01:10:55.659 --> 01:10:57.920
up coming out of that room a leader of that room

01:10:57.920 --> 01:11:00.239
like that's what i'm talking about actual leadership

01:11:00.239 --> 01:11:04.979
skills so important to learn um so i've actually

01:11:04.979 --> 01:11:10.399
been building programs to help identify uh one

01:11:10.399 --> 01:11:14.840
what kind of cohort or what cohorts of people

01:11:14.840 --> 01:11:17.819
uh would work well in the trades and in a trade

01:11:17.819 --> 01:11:19.939
like power line work for example so the same

01:11:19.939 --> 01:11:23.100
could be applied to you know ems firefighters

01:11:23.100 --> 01:11:27.239
first responders that sort of thing is who what's

01:11:27.239 --> 01:11:29.619
the cohort a person look like what's that avatar

01:11:29.619 --> 01:11:31.399
look like that would be good for this profession

01:11:31.399 --> 01:11:34.380
and where do they where do they exist in groups

01:11:34.380 --> 01:11:37.060
and then how can i get into those groups and

01:11:37.060 --> 01:11:40.739
help mentor them with things like leadership

01:11:40.739 --> 01:11:43.079
skills, communication skills, like forget even

01:11:43.079 --> 01:11:46.840
telling them about line work, just prep them

01:11:46.840 --> 01:11:48.939
to be that sort of person that would be good

01:11:48.939 --> 01:11:51.159
for that job later, whether they realize it or

01:11:51.159 --> 01:11:53.760
not, just you doing that. And that association

01:11:53.760 --> 01:11:57.039
with, Hey, alignment is taking the time to train

01:11:57.039 --> 01:12:00.300
this kid or teach this, this kid about, you know,

01:12:00.300 --> 01:12:02.260
leadership skills, communication skills, these

01:12:02.260 --> 01:12:06.220
sorts of like soft skills. It's just that, just

01:12:06.220 --> 01:12:08.579
that understanding that association with that.

01:12:09.149 --> 01:12:12.029
When they come out, they're naturally more than

01:12:12.029 --> 01:12:14.310
likely going to go the direction of fire service,

01:12:14.430 --> 01:12:16.470
line work, whatever, whatever that association

01:12:16.470 --> 01:12:19.130
is. So we've been doing a lot of that lately.

01:12:19.210 --> 01:12:21.350
We've been identifying, you know, like we said,

01:12:21.369 --> 01:12:24.010
we talked about military, why they're so good.

01:12:24.090 --> 01:12:26.630
Another community that is really good for trades

01:12:26.630 --> 01:12:30.569
is that ranch rodeo community. So we do work

01:12:30.569 --> 01:12:32.590
with high school rodeo students. We have a high

01:12:32.590 --> 01:12:35.369
school rodeo team and we'll bring them to like

01:12:35.369 --> 01:12:38.640
a little mini retreat where we. We talk a little

01:12:38.640 --> 01:12:41.380
bit about the trades, but it's very surface level

01:12:41.380 --> 01:12:43.460
about the trades, answer questions they have

01:12:43.460 --> 01:12:46.199
about the trades, introduce and make awareness

01:12:46.199 --> 01:12:49.479
of it. But we impart into them leadership skills,

01:12:49.699 --> 01:12:52.340
communication skills, all of these sorts of things.

01:12:52.420 --> 01:12:54.779
We really try to drive that into them so that

01:12:54.779 --> 01:12:57.199
when they're ready to hit the career train, they

01:12:57.199 --> 01:12:59.199
think about us if they're looking for a career

01:12:59.199 --> 01:13:02.100
and they're aware that the trades exist. That's

01:13:02.100 --> 01:13:04.500
kind of a way that we're trying to like make

01:13:04.500 --> 01:13:07.550
it better. Well, this is the conversation we

01:13:07.550 --> 01:13:09.710
have in the fire service too. And I always, always

01:13:09.710 --> 01:13:12.810
illustrate the local mentorship program they

01:13:12.810 --> 01:13:16.329
have here. My friend Chris Hickman started because

01:13:16.329 --> 01:13:21.270
not only do you address a diversity issue, which,

01:13:21.350 --> 01:13:24.850
you know, is a real thing, but how people have

01:13:24.850 --> 01:13:27.810
responded to it in the past is usually, you know,

01:13:27.810 --> 01:13:30.569
very poorly, which is, well, go get me. 20 gay

01:13:30.569 --> 01:13:32.789
people go get me 12 black people whatever it

01:13:32.789 --> 01:13:34.750
is and they just drag net a group and they're

01:13:34.750 --> 01:13:36.569
like all right congratulations you're a firefighter

01:13:36.569 --> 01:13:39.729
which you know is not well received by the people

01:13:39.729 --> 01:13:42.810
that have you know fought to earn a spot where

01:13:42.810 --> 01:13:46.729
a mentorship program is so effective is you absolutely

01:13:46.729 --> 01:13:49.289
reach into underserved communities and you say

01:13:49.289 --> 01:13:52.350
look we do training three times a week you just

01:13:52.350 --> 01:13:56.319
need to show up close to where you live. We'll

01:13:56.319 --> 01:13:58.039
give you the training. We'll give you the equipment.

01:13:58.420 --> 01:14:00.920
There are scholarships to the fire academy. There

01:14:00.920 --> 01:14:02.939
are fire departments looking to hire on the back

01:14:02.939 --> 01:14:06.319
end. Now you challenge young people of underserved

01:14:06.319 --> 01:14:09.100
areas to reach that bar. You give them all the

01:14:09.100 --> 01:14:11.840
tools and then you have three groups. You have

01:14:11.840 --> 01:14:13.619
a group that goes, you know what, thank you,

01:14:13.640 --> 01:14:15.479
but I just realized I don't want to be a firefighter

01:14:15.479 --> 01:14:17.279
now. I didn't realize it was hard and hot and

01:14:17.279 --> 01:14:19.380
all that stuff. Okay, awesome. You learned something

01:14:19.380 --> 01:14:22.000
totally valuable. You had the middle group that's

01:14:22.000 --> 01:14:23.739
like, okay, you're interested, but you're not

01:14:23.739 --> 01:14:27.100
there yet. You have work to do. Brilliant. Okay.

01:14:27.180 --> 01:14:28.640
There's your homework. And then you have the

01:14:28.640 --> 01:14:30.739
third group, which were the rock stars in that

01:14:30.739 --> 01:14:32.579
community. They're going to go on and be phenomenal

01:14:32.579 --> 01:14:35.760
firefighters, linemen, whatever it is. So I love

01:14:35.760 --> 01:14:37.899
that model because you're actually addressing

01:14:37.899 --> 01:14:40.199
the fact that yes, you know, there are areas

01:14:40.199 --> 01:14:42.359
of the community that are underserved that are

01:14:42.359 --> 01:14:44.880
not reflected in the fire department, but then

01:14:44.880 --> 01:14:46.920
you're going in and not just scooping them all

01:14:46.920 --> 01:14:49.630
up. you're training them and challenging them

01:14:49.630 --> 01:14:51.810
to hit that bar. So when they do put that uniform

01:14:51.810 --> 01:14:54.649
on, they're received as another brother or sister.

01:14:54.869 --> 01:14:58.390
So I think mentorship is absolutely one of the

01:14:58.390 --> 01:15:01.489
biggest tools we have in the trades to get back

01:15:01.489 --> 01:15:06.909
to where we need to be. And that's what the trades

01:15:06.909 --> 01:15:10.289
is all about. Like it's craft, skill, labor.

01:15:10.489 --> 01:15:14.850
It's, I hate to use master, apprentice, master,

01:15:15.170 --> 01:15:17.970
the word master, but like, That's what it was,

01:15:17.989 --> 01:15:20.670
you know, in past times, there was the master

01:15:20.670 --> 01:15:24.149
craftsman and the apprentice. And it was a mentor.

01:15:24.270 --> 01:15:28.750
It's a mentorship. It's on the job training for

01:15:28.750 --> 01:15:31.189
the most part. There's school, sure, to learn,

01:15:31.270 --> 01:15:34.609
you know, technical aspects of electricity or,

01:15:34.689 --> 01:15:38.789
you know, fire service or EMS or whatever. But

01:15:38.789 --> 01:15:40.770
a lot of it's on the job. Like there's nothing

01:15:40.770 --> 01:15:45.029
like coming up on an accident scene. and having

01:15:45.029 --> 01:15:47.609
to problem solve and deal with real time real

01:15:47.609 --> 01:15:50.350
world life and death scenario you know for you

01:15:50.350 --> 01:15:53.689
guys for us there's nothing like you know jumping

01:15:53.689 --> 01:15:55.770
into the middle of a hurricane that just struck

01:15:55.770 --> 01:16:00.270
yesterday and everything is down and there's

01:16:00.270 --> 01:16:03.130
so many dangers involved with that like weights

01:16:03.130 --> 01:16:05.970
and forces like potential energy what's called

01:16:05.970 --> 01:16:09.350
potential energy that could be released in any

01:16:09.350 --> 01:16:11.890
sort of way that could be detrimental to a person,

01:16:11.970 --> 01:16:14.210
whether it's electrical energy, physical energy,

01:16:14.489 --> 01:16:17.449
you know, kinetic, whatever. It's pretty easy

01:16:17.449 --> 01:16:20.810
to move something and end up losing a limb or

01:16:20.810 --> 01:16:24.909
life because of it, right? This forces you, you

01:16:24.909 --> 01:16:28.609
know, anyway, it's great. Mentorship is where

01:16:28.609 --> 01:16:32.250
it's supposed to be. It's a craft, you know,

01:16:32.250 --> 01:16:34.989
whether it's EMS, whether it's line work or a

01:16:34.989 --> 01:16:38.710
trade, it's a craft. Uh, we're meant to mentor.

01:16:39.090 --> 01:16:42.090
That's, that's our job. So any craftsmen that

01:16:42.090 --> 01:16:45.810
said, you know, I'm, I'm not teach, I'm not teaching.

01:16:45.970 --> 01:16:48.289
I don't have to teach apprentices. That's not

01:16:48.289 --> 01:16:50.369
my job. You hear that a lot too. That's another

01:16:50.369 --> 01:16:52.729
one of those old sayings. Like it's not my job

01:16:52.729 --> 01:16:56.369
to teach apprentices. It is most certainly your

01:16:56.369 --> 01:16:59.890
job. It is more your job. Exactly. Who taught

01:16:59.890 --> 01:17:02.630
you is more your job than the actual job you're

01:17:02.630 --> 01:17:06.770
doing at that point. A hundred percent. and this

01:17:06.770 --> 01:17:08.810
is what's what's scary about the fire service

01:17:08.810 --> 01:17:11.489
at the moment i know a lot of departments 50

01:17:11.489 --> 01:17:15.489
have five years on or less so you know because

01:17:15.489 --> 01:17:17.270
i always looked at that i stayed at firefighter

01:17:17.270 --> 01:17:19.989
rank for 14 years and i love that kind of journeyman

01:17:19.989 --> 01:17:21.989
experience that you're talking about you're trying

01:17:21.989 --> 01:17:24.170
to we're already a swiss army knife before you

01:17:24.170 --> 01:17:26.930
talk about promotion and I personally didn't

01:17:26.930 --> 01:17:29.289
have, as I got deeper into my career, any real

01:17:29.289 --> 01:17:33.069
desire to be an engineer or a lieutenant as far

01:17:33.069 --> 01:17:34.970
as the ranks because I was still learning how

01:17:34.970 --> 01:17:38.350
to be a good firefighter paramedic. But when

01:17:38.350 --> 01:17:41.649
you lose that experience, then where are the

01:17:41.649 --> 01:17:44.310
mentors now? And you hear Jocko with the origin

01:17:44.310 --> 01:17:47.250
story of Origin, the clothing company, them trying

01:17:47.250 --> 01:17:49.590
to find someone who knew how to use a loom in

01:17:49.590 --> 01:17:53.409
the US. You had mentioned before we hit record

01:17:53.409 --> 01:17:56.189
about some of the challenges of industry and

01:17:56.189 --> 01:17:59.569
therefore the trades in Canada. What are you

01:17:59.569 --> 01:18:02.310
seeing as far as the challenges and how do we

01:18:02.310 --> 01:18:05.850
reinvigorate, you know, whether it's manufacturer

01:18:05.850 --> 01:18:09.069
or the other industries in our own countries

01:18:09.069 --> 01:18:15.409
again? It's going to that. We're atrophying,

01:18:15.510 --> 01:18:21.430
meaning if you're not building things. you're

01:18:21.430 --> 01:18:25.069
going to lose the people who do build the things

01:18:25.069 --> 01:18:28.789
and then you're going to lose that that transfer

01:18:28.789 --> 01:18:32.210
of knowledge and skill sets as well like it's

01:18:32.210 --> 01:18:35.630
it's going to atrophy which is scary because

01:18:35.630 --> 01:18:40.210
canada honestly produces like i can speak directly

01:18:40.210 --> 01:18:44.130
for the line trade canada's produced amazing

01:18:44.130 --> 01:18:48.890
power line workers we have a wide range of uh

01:18:48.890 --> 01:18:53.649
just geographical geological terrain that really

01:18:53.649 --> 01:18:59.130
tests our skills and makes us great linemen um

01:18:59.130 --> 01:19:01.329
so you have that kind of like playground but

01:19:01.329 --> 01:19:03.869
if you're not building anything on this terrain

01:19:03.869 --> 01:19:06.409
which we haven't really built stuff we haven't

01:19:06.409 --> 01:19:11.029
invested in infrastructure for years now um and

01:19:11.029 --> 01:19:13.979
that's not just that's just not powerline infrastructure

01:19:13.979 --> 01:19:17.760
that's you know pipelines that's logging that's

01:19:17.760 --> 01:19:20.920
mining that's whatever craft skill labor requires

01:19:20.920 --> 01:19:24.300
we just haven't done it for a long time so a

01:19:24.300 --> 01:19:27.739
lot of people that i grew up with in the trade

01:19:27.739 --> 01:19:32.159
have like me left for the united states left

01:19:32.159 --> 01:19:34.939
for other places in the world there's uh powerline

01:19:34.939 --> 01:19:38.260
projects going on in australia right now in europe

01:19:38.260 --> 01:19:42.039
you know south america in united states massive

01:19:42.039 --> 01:19:45.680
projects and you're instantly received down there

01:19:45.680 --> 01:19:48.439
it's like yeah we need your help so let's go

01:19:48.439 --> 01:19:52.039
like we've got stuff for you to do and so we're

01:19:52.039 --> 01:19:54.659
losing that up here so when you lose that too

01:19:54.659 --> 01:19:58.939
like you usually lose the best ones so to say

01:19:58.939 --> 01:20:04.319
first Because they can get those work visas because

01:20:04.319 --> 01:20:06.979
they're highly trained, highly skilled, highly

01:20:06.979 --> 01:20:10.460
needed and required, right? So it's a little

01:20:10.460 --> 01:20:13.399
easier to get those work visas and go to work.

01:20:13.500 --> 01:20:16.899
So you lose the top level of your skill set right

01:20:16.899 --> 01:20:19.239
off the top. There you go. They're gone. And

01:20:19.239 --> 01:20:21.439
then that trickle -down effect of that into passing

01:20:21.439 --> 01:20:23.659
down the skills and knowledge to the next generation,

01:20:23.840 --> 01:20:26.840
we're starting to see that. And it's very unfortunate.

01:20:26.920 --> 01:20:30.630
It makes more work. for the people who do care

01:20:30.630 --> 01:20:33.010
here that are still in those trades it makes

01:20:33.010 --> 01:20:36.489
a lot more work and pressure on them to train

01:20:36.489 --> 01:20:38.890
that next generation because they're they're

01:20:38.890 --> 01:20:43.489
dealing with a smaller a sandbox to play in and

01:20:43.489 --> 01:20:48.569
you know less skilled you know craft and craftsmen

01:20:48.569 --> 01:20:51.229
to help train those people so i don't know it's

01:20:51.229 --> 01:20:53.470
it's tough it's really tough and then even getting

01:20:53.470 --> 01:20:57.130
into the trades themselves so i'll take my son

01:20:57.130 --> 01:21:00.029
for example again I've been in the industry for

01:21:00.029 --> 01:21:02.270
26 years. My family's been in the industry for

01:21:02.270 --> 01:21:06.470
50 years. With all of my connections in Canada,

01:21:06.689 --> 01:21:11.649
I still could not get him a job in Canada doing

01:21:11.649 --> 01:21:15.689
that profession. But one text message, and I've

01:21:15.689 --> 01:21:19.390
got him into that line school in Texas. He'll

01:21:19.390 --> 01:21:22.430
come out of that with an immediate job and a

01:21:22.430 --> 01:21:25.010
great career and good pay. But that's in another

01:21:25.010 --> 01:21:29.819
country, which is fine. you know it's unfortunate

01:21:29.819 --> 01:21:32.659
because not everybody here has that opportunity

01:21:32.659 --> 01:21:36.640
but yeah opportunities pretty slim as well it

01:21:36.640 --> 01:21:39.859
reminds me of a conversation with rasul razak

01:21:39.859 --> 01:21:43.300
which was uh a pseudonym but he was a former

01:21:43.300 --> 01:21:46.619
mujahideen he fought alongside you know our allies

01:21:46.619 --> 01:21:50.680
in afghanistan and did a really powerful conversation

01:21:50.680 --> 01:21:54.439
on post withdrawal what the Afghan people were

01:21:54.439 --> 01:21:56.960
going through, you know, starvation and the winters

01:21:56.960 --> 01:21:59.539
and, you know, the ripple effects of, you know,

01:21:59.560 --> 01:22:03.899
almost 20 years of war. And he was talking about,

01:22:04.039 --> 01:22:06.420
you know, it's great that a lot of the Afghan

01:22:06.420 --> 01:22:09.159
people were brought to the US and, you know,

01:22:09.180 --> 01:22:11.220
often for their own safety. He said, but you've

01:22:11.220 --> 01:22:13.079
got to understand that's all our best people.

01:22:13.460 --> 01:22:15.779
Not all, but like you said, a lot of skilled

01:22:15.779 --> 01:22:17.939
people could come over here and become a physician

01:22:17.939 --> 01:22:20.539
or an engineer or, you know, whatever these roles

01:22:20.539 --> 01:22:24.829
were. And I've heard someone say the converse

01:22:24.829 --> 01:22:30.090
as well. They were all about immigration. But

01:22:30.090 --> 01:22:33.890
think about it. For every someone who truly comes

01:22:33.890 --> 01:22:36.409
from another country that was poached for the

01:22:36.409 --> 01:22:39.590
profession that they do and brought here, that's

01:22:39.590 --> 01:22:43.189
one American of whatever color, creed, ethnicity,

01:22:43.390 --> 01:22:46.800
religion, but a born and bred American. could

01:22:46.800 --> 01:22:49.180
have filled that role as a doctor or as whatever.

01:22:49.539 --> 01:22:52.000
And you've also taken a great physician from,

01:22:52.060 --> 01:22:56.260
let's say, India to bring them here. So again,

01:22:56.500 --> 01:22:59.380
rising tide lifts all ships. When you're investing

01:22:59.380 --> 01:23:02.220
in each other's infrastructure and investing

01:23:02.220 --> 01:23:06.640
in your own people, everyone elevates. But you

01:23:06.640 --> 01:23:09.260
start pilfering and pinching people from other

01:23:09.260 --> 01:23:12.100
countries, you're doing a disservice to that

01:23:12.100 --> 01:23:14.359
country and in theory, your own as well, because

01:23:14.359 --> 01:23:17.189
the question then... you know, is, well, you're

01:23:17.189 --> 01:23:19.510
telling me there aren't enough young people in

01:23:19.510 --> 01:23:22.029
America to become physicians, but what's a big

01:23:22.029 --> 01:23:24.409
barrier? My wife just went through it. You literally

01:23:24.409 --> 01:23:27.630
have half a million dollars worth of debt if

01:23:27.630 --> 01:23:30.390
you become a doctor in America, but there are

01:23:30.390 --> 01:23:32.409
countries all over the world that actually support

01:23:32.409 --> 01:23:34.869
their young students. And India, I believe is

01:23:34.869 --> 01:23:37.109
one of them where they, you know, they take care

01:23:37.109 --> 01:23:38.970
of them through the whole thing, but then, you

01:23:38.970 --> 01:23:40.569
know, how sad is that, that they've educated

01:23:40.569 --> 01:23:42.729
a young doctor. And then a few years later, that

01:23:42.729 --> 01:23:45.699
doctor then. comes to another country after the

01:23:45.699 --> 01:23:48.800
people of India invested in them. So it's a really

01:23:48.800 --> 01:23:50.779
interesting conversation that really kind of

01:23:50.779 --> 01:23:53.640
everyone loses when we do this. And if we actually

01:23:53.640 --> 01:23:56.300
just create these opportunities for our own people

01:23:56.300 --> 01:23:59.979
in each of these countries, everyone wins. And

01:23:59.979 --> 01:24:02.539
it's cheaper because you're not having to ship

01:24:02.539 --> 01:24:05.779
all these products all over the world then. It's

01:24:05.779 --> 01:24:07.920
a topic that definitely needs to be explored

01:24:07.920 --> 01:24:11.489
more. i wouldn't say i'm an expert on it but

01:24:11.489 --> 01:24:15.810
like an opinion i do have on it is we could be

01:24:15.810 --> 01:24:19.630
better at so say like allowing people to because

01:24:19.630 --> 01:24:22.010
this is one of the things that that is really

01:24:22.010 --> 01:24:24.909
nice about power line work is it's a very transient

01:24:24.909 --> 01:24:28.390
trade it's not typically like plumbing or something

01:24:28.390 --> 01:24:30.770
where you can stay very local in your own community

01:24:30.770 --> 01:24:33.010
and you just do it there you can do that with

01:24:33.010 --> 01:24:36.409
line work but you can also be a person who chases

01:24:36.409 --> 01:24:38.909
major projects and goes out and works on major

01:24:38.909 --> 01:24:40.829
projects which are all in different areas right

01:24:40.829 --> 01:24:45.989
you have this ability uh to be transient and

01:24:45.989 --> 01:24:48.430
what that does is it teaches you skill sets that

01:24:48.430 --> 01:24:50.510
you wouldn't necessarily get in your small little

01:24:50.510 --> 01:24:53.930
community it's experience doing know projects

01:24:53.930 --> 01:24:55.550
you wouldn't get to do in your community learning

01:24:55.550 --> 01:24:57.189
from people that you wouldn't get to learn from

01:24:57.189 --> 01:25:01.850
but it's like what happens after so it's this

01:25:01.850 --> 01:25:04.229
conversation around okay like that should be

01:25:04.229 --> 01:25:08.289
a part of training um but we get them back you

01:25:08.289 --> 01:25:11.529
know and we have we have work for them to come

01:25:11.529 --> 01:25:14.250
back to and a life for them to come back to if

01:25:14.250 --> 01:25:16.710
there's no life or no work for them to come back

01:25:16.710 --> 01:25:18.920
to they're not going to come back And that's

01:25:18.920 --> 01:25:21.420
the combo that we've really got to start having

01:25:21.420 --> 01:25:23.800
more of. Like once you lose them, you tend to

01:25:23.800 --> 01:25:26.659
just lose them now. I know lots of my friends

01:25:26.659 --> 01:25:29.000
that have completely moved to the United States,

01:25:29.020 --> 01:25:32.279
not because they totally wanted to. Yeah, they

01:25:32.279 --> 01:25:36.239
wanted to. given that choice to stay home they

01:25:36.239 --> 01:25:38.619
probably would have stayed home they just didn't

01:25:38.619 --> 01:25:40.739
have that ability nothing to come back to you

01:25:40.739 --> 01:25:44.020
know no life like didn't agree with a lot of

01:25:44.020 --> 01:25:46.520
things to come back but they would choose that

01:25:46.520 --> 01:25:48.239
if they had that choice so like i don't know

01:25:48.239 --> 01:25:51.819
more convo around that because there's there's

01:25:51.819 --> 01:25:55.020
awesome components to getting out of your comfort

01:25:55.020 --> 01:25:57.880
zone you know and getting that gaining that experience

01:25:57.880 --> 01:26:01.350
in another country with new people, new cultures,

01:26:01.510 --> 01:26:04.409
new ways of doing things, but then bringing that

01:26:04.409 --> 01:26:08.130
back and teaching the people that you can teach

01:26:08.130 --> 01:26:12.789
from your own place. Absolutely. Love that. One

01:26:12.789 --> 01:26:14.949
more area before we go to some closing questions.

01:26:15.890 --> 01:26:19.390
You, like myself, have transitioned out of actual

01:26:19.390 --> 01:26:22.869
hands -on Lyman work and now are more in this

01:26:22.869 --> 01:26:25.569
space, the promotion, the marketing, that kind

01:26:25.569 --> 01:26:29.479
of area. What made you pull the trigger to to

01:26:29.479 --> 01:26:31.279
step out and let's talk about what you're doing

01:26:31.279 --> 01:26:36.039
these days so my original exit from the tools

01:26:36.039 --> 01:26:39.060
we'll call it from being on the tools was a like

01:26:39.060 --> 01:26:42.239
a family scenario i had to get my son in a different

01:26:42.239 --> 01:26:45.600
school he was uh grew up with severe dyslexia

01:26:45.600 --> 01:26:47.760
so i had to get him out of regular public school

01:26:47.760 --> 01:26:50.600
and into a school that meant i had to move and

01:26:50.600 --> 01:26:53.340
when i moved i was come i kind of faced this

01:26:53.340 --> 01:26:57.409
choice whether i stay more at home with him or

01:26:57.409 --> 01:27:01.430
still trace those chase those transient jobs

01:27:01.430 --> 01:27:04.550
so i decided to take an office job a management

01:27:04.550 --> 01:27:06.789
job in the same industry but more management

01:27:06.789 --> 01:27:10.189
that was my original transition out of it i really

01:27:10.189 --> 01:27:13.550
uh i don't like i'm a tradesman through and through

01:27:13.550 --> 01:27:15.069
all of those other reasons we already talked

01:27:15.069 --> 01:27:17.890
about were the reasons like i loved line work

01:27:17.890 --> 01:27:23.180
um so being in management It wasn't my gig. I

01:27:23.180 --> 01:27:24.939
just didn't like being in an office every day.

01:27:25.060 --> 01:27:26.840
Didn't like sitting under fluorescent lights.

01:27:26.899 --> 01:27:29.119
Didn't like the politics. I just, I still don't.

01:27:29.119 --> 01:27:34.539
I really like shy away from that. So that's what

01:27:34.539 --> 01:27:38.000
motivated me to start the podcast and start marketing.

01:27:38.079 --> 01:27:41.800
And that actually COVID was an opportunity to

01:27:41.800 --> 01:27:44.939
step away from management. So I was in that management

01:27:44.939 --> 01:27:48.630
kind of executive role for like five years. COVID

01:27:48.630 --> 01:27:50.729
was like an opportunity for me to step back from

01:27:50.729 --> 01:27:53.369
that and go, okay, it's like, spend some time

01:27:53.369 --> 01:27:54.989
with the family. Let's pour into the podcast.

01:27:55.149 --> 01:27:57.850
Let's do some marketing. Let's do something else.

01:27:58.069 --> 01:28:00.010
And that's when I ended up taking an instructor

01:28:00.010 --> 01:28:03.789
job, which got me, you know, partially in a classroom,

01:28:03.909 --> 01:28:06.550
like inside, but then I also got to go teach

01:28:06.550 --> 01:28:09.670
climbing class outside and spend time on the

01:28:09.670 --> 01:28:12.409
tools again, spend time in my own belt and hooks

01:28:12.409 --> 01:28:15.729
and climb poles again and towers again and train

01:28:15.729 --> 01:28:18.699
and impart and be that. mentor. Right. And I

01:28:18.699 --> 01:28:21.140
fell in love with that. I loved that. I kept

01:28:21.140 --> 01:28:24.119
running the podcast on the side on my own time

01:28:24.119 --> 01:28:27.279
during that whole, that whole time. And it ended

01:28:27.279 --> 01:28:30.739
up getting recognized by a large contracting

01:28:30.739 --> 01:28:33.579
powerline contracting company. And they asked

01:28:33.579 --> 01:28:36.060
if I just come do that full time for them. So

01:28:36.060 --> 01:28:38.699
like. The marketing and promotion has always

01:28:38.699 --> 01:28:40.699
kind of been there of it. It was my connection

01:28:40.699 --> 01:28:42.960
back to the trade, my brothers and sisters, that

01:28:42.960 --> 01:28:47.020
job and career I fell in love with. So it was

01:28:47.020 --> 01:28:50.140
just this kind of like natural progression towards

01:28:50.140 --> 01:28:53.680
it. I miss it sometimes, but sometimes I'm like,

01:28:53.800 --> 01:28:56.680
I could, I could give or take it now. I've spent

01:28:56.680 --> 01:28:59.579
enough time away from it now that I'm kind of

01:28:59.579 --> 01:29:02.130
like, I don't necessarily whatever. know if i'd

01:29:02.130 --> 01:29:04.909
want to jump back into on the tools again so

01:29:04.909 --> 01:29:07.010
i'm like i'm in a weird place right now and i

01:29:07.010 --> 01:29:09.130
was actually curious like how you're dealing

01:29:09.130 --> 01:29:12.029
with that as well from from the fire perspective

01:29:12.029 --> 01:29:17.210
and used to because honestly nothing else in

01:29:17.210 --> 01:29:21.829
my life was quite like that like i'm I'm on my

01:29:21.829 --> 01:29:24.310
own. I do a lot of work from my own home office

01:29:24.310 --> 01:29:26.369
like I am right now. But then I also get out

01:29:26.369 --> 01:29:29.630
on the road. I get half and half, 50 -50. I get

01:29:29.630 --> 01:29:31.529
out in the field with guys still, but I'm not

01:29:31.529 --> 01:29:33.109
doing the actual work. But I get out there to

01:29:33.109 --> 01:29:34.949
interview them and mingle with them and talk

01:29:34.949 --> 01:29:37.710
to them. And then I'm back in my office. And

01:29:37.710 --> 01:29:40.050
I spend some time in a corporate office as well.

01:29:41.550 --> 01:29:45.210
But none of that has the experiences or have

01:29:45.210 --> 01:29:47.390
I gained the experiences in that that I did.

01:29:48.000 --> 01:29:50.579
on the tools in the trade building camaraderie

01:29:50.579 --> 01:29:54.760
brotherhood like enjoying the struggle of everyday

01:29:54.760 --> 01:29:57.359
line work and all of those other things we talked

01:29:57.359 --> 01:30:00.239
about so i don't know it's a weird time for me

01:30:00.239 --> 01:30:02.640
right now like i'm drifting further and further

01:30:02.640 --> 01:30:06.180
from it um but still it's like it's almost like

01:30:06.180 --> 01:30:08.000
the highlight of my career that i still talk

01:30:08.000 --> 01:30:10.319
about was like back when you know i've become

01:30:10.319 --> 01:30:12.260
that person now it's like oh back when i used

01:30:12.260 --> 01:30:15.140
to do that i kind of i don't know i don't want

01:30:15.140 --> 01:30:18.079
to be that person either right So I don't know.

01:30:18.800 --> 01:30:21.420
What I found when I've analyzed my transition

01:30:21.420 --> 01:30:26.460
is the mission hasn't changed. Before, and I

01:30:26.460 --> 01:30:28.699
was just talking to my mom to this, I believe

01:30:28.699 --> 01:30:31.100
that when I was a young boy, I was very kind.

01:30:31.380 --> 01:30:33.859
I went through a turbulent time, kind of teens

01:30:33.859 --> 01:30:37.319
-ish, where I was probably more selfish in dealing

01:30:37.319 --> 01:30:42.020
with some family issues and stuff. And then I

01:30:42.020 --> 01:30:45.029
found my way back again. And then the mission

01:30:45.029 --> 01:30:47.329
again was to be kind. Even during the turbulent

01:30:47.329 --> 01:30:49.170
times, I was a lifeguard. I was always doing

01:30:49.170 --> 01:30:52.069
something that was trying to make people's lives

01:30:52.069 --> 01:30:55.170
better, keep them safe, etc. And so now when

01:30:55.170 --> 01:30:58.529
I look back at the 14 years, my career was bizarre.

01:30:58.789 --> 01:31:01.649
I didn't expect to leave the fire service, but

01:31:01.649 --> 01:31:05.890
the universe, God, literally was like, hey, you've

01:31:05.890 --> 01:31:09.529
done all you can do from the inside. You like

01:31:09.529 --> 01:31:12.630
to... you know kick in doors so we're going to

01:31:12.630 --> 01:31:15.270
put you outside the fire service and continue

01:31:15.270 --> 01:31:18.789
this and what i realized is uh the uh it was

01:31:18.789 --> 01:31:20.689
actually a delta guy initially i think that told

01:31:20.689 --> 01:31:22.869
me this but the force multiplier i love that

01:31:22.869 --> 01:31:26.970
term like 14 years in you can maybe you know

01:31:26.970 --> 01:31:29.270
you can promote you can put bugles on your collar

01:31:29.270 --> 01:31:33.289
or you can go teach at a fire academy but what

01:31:33.289 --> 01:31:36.750
i saw is Or you can actually try and make changes

01:31:36.750 --> 01:31:39.270
that affect the entire fire service. And then

01:31:39.270 --> 01:31:41.810
ultimately, every single person, every single

01:31:41.810 --> 01:31:44.069
one of those first responders now responds to

01:31:44.069 --> 01:31:47.930
in their whole career. So once I kind of left

01:31:47.930 --> 01:31:51.250
and tried volunteering for a second, I realized

01:31:51.250 --> 01:31:54.170
that the identity hadn't changed at all. It was

01:31:54.170 --> 01:31:56.869
different costumes. I wore a lifeguard costume.

01:31:56.949 --> 01:32:00.010
I wore a stuntman costume. I wore a firefighter

01:32:00.010 --> 01:32:02.880
and a paramedic costume. But the mission... It's

01:32:02.880 --> 01:32:05.119
the same. It's James Gearing just putting clothes

01:32:05.119 --> 01:32:08.960
and taking them off. So that's how I've come

01:32:08.960 --> 01:32:11.079
to terms with it. And watching, for example,

01:32:11.239 --> 01:32:16.159
Pasco County two days ago go to the 24 -72, this

01:32:16.159 --> 01:32:19.119
healthy work week, fully staffed. And my friend

01:32:19.119 --> 01:32:23.000
Dixon, who's a union president, saying that he

01:32:23.000 --> 01:32:25.960
has been watching his brothers and sisters posting,

01:32:26.140 --> 01:32:30.859
this will be the last. I ever work on a 24 -48.

01:32:31.199 --> 01:32:33.140
And this is, you know, they were understaffed

01:32:33.140 --> 01:32:34.960
before. So they were getting forced into mandatory

01:32:34.960 --> 01:32:36.859
just a couple of years ago, two, three years

01:32:36.859 --> 01:32:39.880
ago. And now they're on a four fully staffed

01:32:39.880 --> 01:32:43.159
shift system where they go for 24 hours and then

01:32:43.159 --> 01:32:45.880
they have a full 72 hours and they will not get

01:32:45.880 --> 01:32:48.319
a phone call saying, you have to stay. Tell your

01:32:48.319 --> 01:32:51.140
kids you can't go home. Life's changing. You

01:32:51.140 --> 01:32:53.619
know, and was that just me? Absolutely not. But

01:32:53.619 --> 01:32:55.779
I know, and he said this, that I was at least

01:32:55.779 --> 01:32:58.729
part of that. And there's other departments that

01:32:58.729 --> 01:33:00.329
have reached out that I know I've helped definitely

01:33:00.329 --> 01:33:04.649
one -on -one. So we're talking thousands of firefighters

01:33:04.649 --> 01:33:07.229
who are going to go on and save hundreds or change

01:33:07.229 --> 01:33:10.149
hundreds of thousands of lives. That's enough

01:33:10.149 --> 01:33:11.949
for me. I don't need to be front and center.

01:33:12.010 --> 01:33:13.630
I don't need to be in the bunker gear, getting

01:33:13.630 --> 01:33:16.289
off the rig, looking all heroic. It's time for

01:33:16.289 --> 01:33:19.890
someone else to do that now. But I think that's

01:33:19.890 --> 01:33:21.770
what keeps me going. And then writing the books

01:33:21.770 --> 01:33:23.949
and now working on this TV show where now I've

01:33:23.949 --> 01:33:26.270
got my heart set on changing millions of lives.

01:33:27.010 --> 01:33:29.789
Sounds grandiose, but imagine if you had the

01:33:29.789 --> 01:33:33.090
popularity of Tiger King with a show that actually

01:33:33.090 --> 01:33:36.489
helped people heal. Made a difference. Imagine

01:33:36.489 --> 01:33:38.949
the impact. Yeah. So it's just now it's like,

01:33:39.010 --> 01:33:41.810
how can you go bigger and not more grandiose,

01:33:41.869 --> 01:33:44.670
but take, you know, you're 20 years old. How

01:33:44.670 --> 01:33:46.689
can you use that experience? Now you're 30. Now

01:33:46.689 --> 01:33:50.130
you're 40. Now you're 50. 50 years old with all

01:33:50.130 --> 01:33:52.609
these things that you've done. You know, now

01:33:52.609 --> 01:33:55.880
how can you. use that wisdom in a way that helps

01:33:55.880 --> 01:33:58.039
so many people and ultimately most people will

01:33:58.039 --> 01:33:59.800
never know you had anything to do with it which

01:33:59.800 --> 01:34:02.000
i think is fucking awesome because it's not for

01:34:02.000 --> 01:34:04.039
the glory it's just to make the world better

01:34:04.039 --> 01:34:07.579
you know so that for me is really how i come

01:34:07.579 --> 01:34:10.880
to terms with it is come hell or high water we're

01:34:10.880 --> 01:34:13.100
talking you know just before we hit record about

01:34:13.100 --> 01:34:18.659
you know the the um The 2025 and the impact on

01:34:18.659 --> 01:34:22.199
a lot of companies and how financial struggles,

01:34:22.539 --> 01:34:25.520
whether I have three sponsors or zero sponsors,

01:34:25.659 --> 01:34:28.560
three episodes go out a week regardless. The

01:34:28.560 --> 01:34:30.640
mission hasn't changed. Hopefully, I get sponsors

01:34:30.640 --> 01:34:32.600
where I can pay my mortgage. That's kind of important,

01:34:32.819 --> 01:34:35.479
but it doesn't change the fact that come hell

01:34:35.479 --> 01:34:37.180
or high water, three episodes are going to go

01:34:37.180 --> 01:34:39.539
out every week because I know that someone out

01:34:39.539 --> 01:34:41.319
there would have need to have heard that very

01:34:41.319 --> 01:34:45.149
conversation. Long answer to your question, but

01:34:45.149 --> 01:34:48.609
I think that's it. It's just understanding what

01:34:48.609 --> 01:34:51.090
you're doing now is so important, but it's just

01:34:51.090 --> 01:34:55.369
less front -facing admiration that we got when

01:34:55.369 --> 01:34:57.430
we were actually doing the job, whether you were

01:34:57.430 --> 01:34:59.529
going towards a storm or I was going towards

01:34:59.529 --> 01:35:03.289
a fire. Yeah, I mean, you can never change that

01:35:03.289 --> 01:35:05.770
feeling. But it's also kind of been there, done

01:35:05.770 --> 01:35:09.350
that. 14 years later, you're not learning as

01:35:09.350 --> 01:35:12.770
much per every call. It takes an absolute bomb

01:35:12.770 --> 01:35:15.250
burner to even get your heart rate up 14 years

01:35:15.250 --> 01:35:18.489
later. So that's a good time to be like, all

01:35:18.489 --> 01:35:20.510
right, how can I use all of this that I've got

01:35:20.510 --> 01:35:23.630
now and help everyone that's in there? And then,

01:35:23.649 --> 01:35:27.310
again, create this amazing opportunity so the

01:35:27.310 --> 01:35:29.670
next generation of firefighters are going into

01:35:29.670 --> 01:35:32.550
something that's super healthy for their physical

01:35:32.550 --> 01:35:35.170
health, for their mental health. And, you know,

01:35:35.189 --> 01:35:38.359
we don't have... comments that i've had you know

01:35:38.359 --> 01:35:40.100
when i walk through the front door of oh you

01:35:40.100 --> 01:35:42.039
wait 10 years you'll have you know your third

01:35:42.039 --> 01:35:44.579
marriage and an alcohol problem i want that to

01:35:44.579 --> 01:35:46.960
go away completely i want that to have been ancient

01:35:46.960 --> 01:35:48.720
history where they say did you hear what they

01:35:48.720 --> 01:35:52.420
used to say back in the day but now firefighting

01:35:52.420 --> 01:35:56.199
is still dangerous still courageous but the environment

01:35:56.199 --> 01:35:58.960
that they work in sets them up for a high level

01:35:58.960 --> 01:36:01.819
of performance not a likelihood of cancer or

01:36:01.819 --> 01:36:05.399
suicide yeah I love the way you framed that a

01:36:05.399 --> 01:36:08.920
hundred percent. I, I feel like that is, that's

01:36:08.920 --> 01:36:10.899
definitely, I resonate with that as well. It's

01:36:10.899 --> 01:36:13.619
like the mission has not changed. I guess it's

01:36:13.619 --> 01:36:18.779
just like the, the transformation of myself going

01:36:18.779 --> 01:36:23.909
through this in real time is what's just. I don't

01:36:23.909 --> 01:36:25.529
know. It's a, it's a human experience. Everybody

01:36:25.529 --> 01:36:27.689
does it. That's why like somebody listening to

01:36:27.689 --> 01:36:30.590
this right now is somewhere in this transition

01:36:30.590 --> 01:36:33.729
period. At what point it, you know, it's just

01:36:33.729 --> 01:36:35.390
a matter of time before you're in a point like

01:36:35.390 --> 01:36:37.609
myself or you, where you've been in something

01:36:37.609 --> 01:36:40.550
for a period of time and you now exit that and

01:36:40.550 --> 01:36:41.829
you've got to figure out something else to do.

01:36:41.909 --> 01:36:44.449
So I, I love the way you framed that. It's just

01:36:44.449 --> 01:36:46.850
a costume. It really is just a, it's just a costume

01:36:46.850 --> 01:36:49.569
I wore. But yeah, the mission hasn't changed.

01:36:49.689 --> 01:36:52.750
Yeah. And I think you look back with pride. I

01:36:52.750 --> 01:36:55.050
mean, it's like raising your kids. One day, I

01:36:55.050 --> 01:36:57.229
mean, yours is about to turn 19. Mine is not

01:36:57.229 --> 01:37:01.529
far behind that. And I know that a year and a

01:37:01.529 --> 01:37:05.090
half from now, my son will be going to college,

01:37:05.390 --> 01:37:10.250
touch wood, and be off on his own medical journey.

01:37:10.430 --> 01:37:12.649
And now we're going to have an empty home. And

01:37:12.649 --> 01:37:14.989
again, we can't relive that. That's the point.

01:37:15.340 --> 01:37:17.640
So you're like, okay, well, what can we do now?

01:37:17.680 --> 01:37:20.100
Well, I'm going to watch him create his own family

01:37:20.100 --> 01:37:22.039
and his career, and I'm going to keep doing what

01:37:22.039 --> 01:37:25.180
I'm doing. But it's okay to be nostalgic. It

01:37:25.180 --> 01:37:27.979
is. But you already live that. You had the best

01:37:27.979 --> 01:37:29.880
years. As you said, the early years were the

01:37:29.880 --> 01:37:33.539
most exciting years. So I think being proud of

01:37:33.539 --> 01:37:35.439
that and then turning the page and be like, all

01:37:35.439 --> 01:37:38.199
right, what exciting shit can I start now? So

01:37:38.199 --> 01:37:40.619
that when I'm 60, I look back and go, man, 52

01:37:40.619 --> 01:37:43.829
was a hell of a year, wasn't it? Yeah. And I

01:37:43.829 --> 01:37:47.630
had one experience in last October. I got to

01:37:47.630 --> 01:37:50.829
take him to, we do this thing in line work. We

01:37:50.829 --> 01:37:53.109
call it the international lineman rodeo, but

01:37:53.109 --> 01:37:56.470
it's just a competition for linemen to get together.

01:37:56.550 --> 01:37:58.510
Thousands of linemen get together to compete

01:37:58.510 --> 01:38:01.909
in the name of safety and competition in our

01:38:01.909 --> 01:38:05.970
sport, like a fireman sport, you know, day. So

01:38:05.970 --> 01:38:07.609
we competed in this time. So I took him to the

01:38:07.609 --> 01:38:10.670
largest one in the world. It's in Kansas city.

01:38:12.079 --> 01:38:15.880
I got to immerse him in this career that he was

01:38:15.880 --> 01:38:18.520
wanting to get into now, but it was super special

01:38:18.520 --> 01:38:20.600
because it's also like what I've spent the last

01:38:20.600 --> 01:38:25.020
26 years of my life in and all of the connections.

01:38:25.439 --> 01:38:28.359
Like it was so neat for him to experience that

01:38:28.359 --> 01:38:31.539
with me and see again, not like not gloating,

01:38:31.560 --> 01:38:34.060
but see some of the impact his father's had in

01:38:34.060 --> 01:38:37.640
the line community was a bit of a celebrity there

01:38:37.640 --> 01:38:40.680
in that way, but like not. Again, not like not

01:38:40.680 --> 01:38:43.300
gloating because everyone that came up to say

01:38:43.300 --> 01:38:45.739
something was something along the lines of like,

01:38:45.819 --> 01:38:48.520
thank you for doing what you do. I would never

01:38:48.520 --> 01:38:51.600
have known about this career. I was miserable

01:38:51.600 --> 01:38:54.659
at my old job. I was doing this and now I'm doing

01:38:54.659 --> 01:38:58.380
this and I love it. I'm thriving. like a few

01:38:58.380 --> 01:39:00.720
of them with baby strollers and their wives and

01:39:00.720 --> 01:39:03.039
we just want to thank you and like my son's standing

01:39:03.039 --> 01:39:05.239
there and he got to hear this again and again

01:39:05.239 --> 01:39:07.920
and again and again i could just i don't know

01:39:07.920 --> 01:39:11.060
for him to be able to see that because it made

01:39:11.060 --> 01:39:13.520
this connection i think with him that this this

01:39:13.520 --> 01:39:16.520
connection to what what dad did for the last

01:39:16.520 --> 01:39:19.420
26 years you know some of those times some of

01:39:19.420 --> 01:39:22.340
those birthdays i had to miss because i was on

01:39:22.340 --> 01:39:25.750
a storm call or called out or whatever Like that

01:39:25.750 --> 01:39:28.310
was the reason. And I don't know, it's like it

01:39:28.310 --> 01:39:30.069
clicked for him because really your kids don't

01:39:30.069 --> 01:39:32.449
care about what you do until they care. You know,

01:39:32.470 --> 01:39:35.250
one day it clicks with them when they're kids.

01:39:35.350 --> 01:39:37.449
They don't really, I don't know. Dad builds power

01:39:37.449 --> 01:39:39.670
lines. I don't even know what that is, but it

01:39:39.670 --> 01:39:42.409
clicked for him there. And that was super special.

01:39:43.529 --> 01:39:46.689
I just did a workout that I do every year. It's

01:39:46.689 --> 01:39:51.149
a fundraising one in memory of the 343 we lost

01:39:51.149 --> 01:39:54.960
in 9 -11. And it's it's imagine like a kind of

01:39:54.960 --> 01:39:57.979
CrossFit fused with firefighter movements. It's

01:39:57.979 --> 01:40:00.199
really, really good. I've done it for 11 years

01:40:00.199 --> 01:40:03.279
now, I think. But it's kind of like you're saying

01:40:03.279 --> 01:40:04.880
it wasn't even so much. Thank you. Even though

01:40:04.880 --> 01:40:07.960
there were some of those, it was just I was reconnected

01:40:07.960 --> 01:40:10.340
with so many firefighters that I've known for

01:40:10.340 --> 01:40:12.579
years and years and years. And these are the

01:40:12.579 --> 01:40:14.359
men and women that are at these events. This

01:40:14.359 --> 01:40:17.359
is the true brotherhood and sisterhood. And I've

01:40:17.359 --> 01:40:19.199
been out the fire service, you know, when I went

01:40:19.199 --> 01:40:22.159
this last time for. seven years i hadn't worked

01:40:22.159 --> 01:40:26.319
for that department for 12 years and between

01:40:26.319 --> 01:40:29.140
the actual events i literally spent the whole

01:40:29.140 --> 01:40:32.319
time just bumping into people and so and it wasn't

01:40:32.319 --> 01:40:34.220
even so much the podcast even though that was

01:40:34.220 --> 01:40:36.279
part of it it was just when you've worked with

01:40:36.279 --> 01:40:38.659
these people there is this bond and it doesn't

01:40:38.659 --> 01:40:41.319
end just because you've gone you know for a few

01:40:41.319 --> 01:40:45.000
years so I think seeing that too, seeing what

01:40:45.000 --> 01:40:47.420
the true camaraderie looks like when you're amongst

01:40:47.420 --> 01:40:50.020
the real men and women of the fire service, you

01:40:50.020 --> 01:40:52.699
know, who are there when it counts. So they're,

01:40:52.800 --> 01:40:55.739
you know, the shared suffering yet again to show

01:40:55.739 --> 01:40:57.699
the firefighters of New York that we haven't

01:40:57.699 --> 01:40:59.840
forgotten and to fundraise for local charities.

01:41:00.380 --> 01:41:02.939
Like that's something special. My son got to

01:41:02.939 --> 01:41:04.779
witness that, you know, a little while ago too.

01:41:05.659 --> 01:41:07.600
So, yeah, I mean, it is. And then you feel locked

01:41:07.600 --> 01:41:09.460
in again. You're like, OK, this is why I'm doing

01:41:09.460 --> 01:41:11.920
this. This is a beautiful reminder of, yeah,

01:41:11.960 --> 01:41:14.119
it's not just staring at a screen and talking

01:41:14.119 --> 01:41:16.460
to a microphone because I don't know if you have

01:41:16.460 --> 01:41:18.800
the same. It's kind of feels a little hermit

01:41:18.800 --> 01:41:21.720
-esque because we're not in the station every

01:41:21.720 --> 01:41:23.600
day. But then you get to kind of drop in and

01:41:23.600 --> 01:41:25.779
reconnect with some of these places. And, you

01:41:25.779 --> 01:41:29.180
know, it does show the fruits of your labor,

01:41:29.260 --> 01:41:32.960
as it were. Yeah, agreed. I love it. It was a

01:41:32.960 --> 01:41:35.819
great experience. All right. Well, going to some

01:41:35.819 --> 01:41:37.680
closing questions then. The first one I love

01:41:37.680 --> 01:41:40.479
to ask, is there a book or are there books that

01:41:40.479 --> 01:41:42.760
you'd love to recommend? It can be related to

01:41:42.760 --> 01:41:44.760
our discussion today or completely unrelated.

01:41:45.920 --> 01:41:48.220
A book that I've been recommending a lot lately

01:41:48.220 --> 01:41:53.000
is Winning by Tim Grover. I got to see Tim in

01:41:53.000 --> 01:41:56.560
person a couple of months ago at an event, give

01:41:56.560 --> 01:42:01.539
a talk, and I'm going to see him again live next

01:42:01.539 --> 01:42:05.369
month. Absolutely love Tim Tim's. If anyone doesn't

01:42:05.369 --> 01:42:08.550
know, Tim is Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan's,

01:42:08.550 --> 01:42:11.170
most famously known as Kobe Bryant and Michael

01:42:11.170 --> 01:42:13.569
Jordan's personal trainer. He was on The Last

01:42:13.569 --> 01:42:17.869
Dance. Yeah, just winning is a phenomenal book.

01:42:17.989 --> 01:42:20.310
It's one of those ones that'll just kick you

01:42:20.310 --> 01:42:23.250
right in the butt and really start making you

01:42:23.250 --> 01:42:24.890
question like what you're up to and what you're

01:42:24.890 --> 01:42:27.569
doing and how bad you want things. So yeah, winning.

01:42:28.189 --> 01:42:31.529
Brilliant. What about television, film, documentary?

01:42:33.319 --> 01:42:36.439
television film documentary i haven't really

01:42:36.439 --> 01:42:40.279
been into tv lately i consume a lot of podcasts

01:42:40.279 --> 01:42:44.079
and i won't point to one podcast because i listen

01:42:44.079 --> 01:42:48.260
to so many but honestly i i just it's something

01:42:48.260 --> 01:42:52.720
everybody has their their podcasts just get out

01:42:52.720 --> 01:42:55.420
of get out of the normal train of ones you listen

01:42:55.420 --> 01:42:58.479
to and try one that you haven't every, you know,

01:42:58.479 --> 01:43:00.539
maybe inject one a week. If you're one of those

01:43:00.539 --> 01:43:03.199
avid podcast listeners, one a week that you haven't

01:43:03.199 --> 01:43:05.340
really listened to lately, but that's one thing

01:43:05.340 --> 01:43:07.720
I've been challenging myself with. Brilliant.

01:43:07.920 --> 01:43:10.180
So the next question, is there a person that

01:43:10.180 --> 01:43:12.800
you recommend to come on this podcast as a guest

01:43:12.800 --> 01:43:15.539
to speak to the first responders, military and

01:43:15.539 --> 01:43:18.560
associated professions of the world? Yeah, I've

01:43:18.560 --> 01:43:21.659
got one for you and I could ask him if he'd be

01:43:21.659 --> 01:43:24.399
willing to do it. It came on my podcast. His

01:43:24.399 --> 01:43:28.720
name is Shane Kimbrough and he's an army veteran.

01:43:28.779 --> 01:43:32.979
He was a helicopter commander and he was an astronaut

01:43:32.979 --> 01:43:36.420
commander, space station commander, spent 365

01:43:36.420 --> 01:43:43.250
days on the space station. Numerous, over 24

01:43:43.250 --> 01:43:46.529
hours of spacewalking time. Phenomenal guy. I

01:43:46.529 --> 01:43:48.470
think he would be good for your community. He's

01:43:48.470 --> 01:43:51.189
a really interesting guy. So that'd be a good

01:43:51.189 --> 01:43:54.710
one. And then there's another one that I've met

01:43:54.710 --> 01:43:59.189
recently, Ted Carter. So former vice admiral

01:43:59.189 --> 01:44:02.970
and now president of Ohio State University, Ted

01:44:02.970 --> 01:44:06.470
Carter. He's a good guy. Promotes the trades,

01:44:06.550 --> 01:44:09.949
promotes veterans, obviously. um and has a lot

01:44:09.949 --> 01:44:12.970
of like a lot of leadership knowledge to draw

01:44:12.970 --> 01:44:15.949
from so he'd be great for the show as well brilliant

01:44:15.949 --> 01:44:18.210
have you ever thought about trying to get on

01:44:18.210 --> 01:44:22.859
mike rose show Yeah, I would love to. I have

01:44:22.859 --> 01:44:25.340
not reached out, but yes. Have you had Mike Rowe

01:44:25.340 --> 01:44:27.479
on yours? No, I need to. I've wanted to. I think

01:44:27.479 --> 01:44:29.760
I have written to him before, but now he's actually

01:44:29.760 --> 01:44:31.960
got a podcast. It's probably time that I do again.

01:44:32.199 --> 01:44:34.979
You know, mate, it's funny. Hardly any of these

01:44:34.979 --> 01:44:36.579
people have firefighters on their show either.

01:44:36.659 --> 01:44:39.119
Joe Rogan has never had a career firefighter

01:44:39.119 --> 01:44:42.699
on his show in almost 3 ,000 episodes. So that's

01:44:42.699 --> 01:44:45.939
how underrepresented our community is. He's never

01:44:45.939 --> 01:44:49.520
had a lineman on his show either. yeah yeah he's

01:44:49.520 --> 01:44:52.720
never had alignment on a show either and i It's

01:44:52.720 --> 01:44:55.619
just one of those industries not many people

01:44:55.619 --> 01:44:58.659
are aware of. I think he'd really enjoy having

01:44:58.659 --> 01:45:01.699
a convo with a lineman and exposing awareness

01:45:01.699 --> 01:45:05.140
of the community and what they do because I think

01:45:05.140 --> 01:45:07.680
it's massively valuable. He's had a couple people

01:45:07.680 --> 01:45:10.220
on that have referenced doing line work before

01:45:10.220 --> 01:45:12.659
in the past or having it in the family, like

01:45:12.659 --> 01:45:18.119
some famous people. I know Cam Haynes has a really

01:45:18.119 --> 01:45:21.670
good hunting buddy that's a lineman. Um, and

01:45:21.670 --> 01:45:23.470
I think Cam's had them on his show, but yeah,

01:45:23.510 --> 01:45:26.090
we could just definitely use some more. Yeah,

01:45:26.130 --> 01:45:28.369
absolutely. That's what I'm hoping to, when the

01:45:28.369 --> 01:45:30.930
show comes out, get a, get, get on some of these

01:45:30.930 --> 01:45:32.989
bigger platforms and start telling our story.

01:45:33.010 --> 01:45:36.489
Cause you know, it's not only about what we do,

01:45:36.550 --> 01:45:39.250
it's how we see the world, which is what, you

01:45:39.250 --> 01:45:41.630
know, kind of my, my latest book is trying to

01:45:41.630 --> 01:45:45.029
do is to show, show society through a firefighter's

01:45:45.029 --> 01:45:47.149
eyes to not make the firefighter, the kind of

01:45:47.149 --> 01:45:49.289
hero of the story as it were quite the opposite,

01:45:49.329 --> 01:45:52.500
but you know, A politician can get up there and

01:45:52.500 --> 01:45:56.159
say that crime is down or whatever shit they're

01:45:56.159 --> 01:45:58.859
spouting at that moment. But ask a cop, ask a

01:45:58.859 --> 01:46:02.180
paramedic, ask a firefighter. How is their community?

01:46:02.460 --> 01:46:04.939
Ask the people in Vancouver or Toronto about

01:46:04.939 --> 01:46:07.699
the opioid crisis or San Francisco about the

01:46:07.699 --> 01:46:09.899
homelessness. They'll tell you how it actually

01:46:09.899 --> 01:46:12.310
is because they're the ones. the last line of

01:46:12.310 --> 01:46:13.930
defense for these poor people when they're at

01:46:13.930 --> 01:46:16.470
death's door so i think it would be you know

01:46:16.470 --> 01:46:18.909
an invaluable perspective and i hope the show

01:46:18.909 --> 01:46:20.850
will then kind of leverage a lot of people to

01:46:20.850 --> 01:46:22.289
be able to get out there and tell their story

01:46:22.289 --> 01:46:26.689
too there's also the devin levac i recommended

01:46:26.689 --> 01:46:29.050
to you i don't know him personally but i've followed

01:46:29.050 --> 01:46:31.670
him for a while and i think he'd be great for

01:46:31.670 --> 01:46:33.630
your community because you just even mentioned

01:46:33.630 --> 01:46:36.710
that word community and building community and

01:46:36.710 --> 01:46:39.939
i think This whole idea of building community

01:46:39.939 --> 01:46:44.539
has been engulfed by the online idea of building

01:46:44.539 --> 01:46:47.020
a community and a digital presence and a digital

01:46:47.020 --> 01:46:50.260
community through followers or subscribers. And

01:46:50.260 --> 01:46:53.420
that's definitely a great aspect, but like what

01:46:53.420 --> 01:46:55.960
happens when you, when you try to take that in

01:46:55.960 --> 01:46:59.470
real life. And I think we need more. in real

01:46:59.470 --> 01:47:04.510
life community. Um, and he does it amazing building

01:47:04.510 --> 01:47:08.890
both digital online and in real life communities.

01:47:09.109 --> 01:47:11.210
And what he's doing with his in, in real life

01:47:11.210 --> 01:47:14.210
communities, which are is, is awesome. Another

01:47:14.210 --> 01:47:17.270
one is Eric Hinman. I've had him on my show in

01:47:17.270 --> 01:47:19.810
the past from Austin, Texas. He's phenomenal

01:47:19.810 --> 01:47:24.510
at building community. He's in that, uh, that

01:47:24.510 --> 01:47:29.420
hybrid athlete, high rocks, CrossFit. uh that

01:47:29.420 --> 01:47:31.800
sort of community health and wellness community

01:47:31.800 --> 01:47:36.260
but he does such a good job at actually building

01:47:36.260 --> 01:47:39.960
community through in real life stuff as well

01:47:39.960 --> 01:47:42.640
as the digital so i don't know their their perspectives

01:47:42.640 --> 01:47:45.380
on on both the digital and in real life community

01:47:45.380 --> 01:47:48.699
aspect would be cool was it devin that you told

01:47:48.699 --> 01:47:52.000
me about that had the the farms yeah yeah yeah

01:47:52.000 --> 01:47:56.850
yeah brilliant All right. Well, the last question

01:47:56.850 --> 01:47:58.649
before we make sure everyone knows where to find

01:47:58.649 --> 01:48:03.850
you, what do you do to decompress? Honestly,

01:48:04.289 --> 01:48:08.670
decompression for me is time alone. I'm like

01:48:08.670 --> 01:48:11.989
an introverted extrovert. So I can turn it on

01:48:11.989 --> 01:48:14.229
when I need to, but I really need that recharge

01:48:14.229 --> 01:48:17.510
my social battery by spending time alone. And

01:48:17.510 --> 01:48:20.850
that's just doing things as simple as walking,

01:48:21.029 --> 01:48:24.329
hiking, things like that, writing. Those are,

01:48:24.329 --> 01:48:29.189
again, I'm just a normal dude. I don't take things

01:48:29.189 --> 01:48:32.189
usually to the extreme, especially you see a

01:48:32.189 --> 01:48:34.930
lot of that again on social media where everybody

01:48:34.930 --> 01:48:37.489
thinks you got to run 15 marathons a year in

01:48:37.489 --> 01:48:40.590
order to have time to yourself. But I just go

01:48:40.590 --> 01:48:42.810
for a walk, listen to a podcast, listen to an

01:48:42.810 --> 01:48:46.729
audio book or go with no device. Write a lot

01:48:46.729 --> 01:48:49.619
in my journal. whatever my thoughts are just

01:48:49.619 --> 01:48:52.239
get it out of my head on the paper i love being

01:48:52.239 --> 01:48:56.319
creative um even just thinking about creative

01:48:56.319 --> 01:48:58.899
things and not even necessarily making them but

01:48:58.899 --> 01:49:00.779
just going through the process of thinking them

01:49:00.779 --> 01:49:03.539
writing them out ideas things like that i love

01:49:03.539 --> 01:49:06.880
that that's like my decompression there has been

01:49:06.880 --> 01:49:09.420
a kind of um hero worshipping of ultra running

01:49:09.420 --> 01:49:12.340
and yeah it's interesting because i mean you

01:49:12.340 --> 01:49:14.680
know i'm the first one to be out there talking

01:49:14.680 --> 01:49:16.819
about how important it is for we move but i always

01:49:16.819 --> 01:49:20.300
look at what did we do back in the day as human

01:49:20.300 --> 01:49:22.760
beings the way that we you know found our food

01:49:22.760 --> 01:49:24.539
the way prepared our food you know the way we

01:49:24.539 --> 01:49:27.279
moved etc the way we you know takes a village

01:49:27.279 --> 01:49:29.380
you know we took care of each other's kids and

01:49:29.380 --> 01:49:32.560
took care of the elderly but if you look at these

01:49:32.560 --> 01:49:36.539
ultra endurance events you're getting away from

01:49:36.539 --> 01:49:39.159
wellness now and you're doing a very myopic performance

01:49:39.159 --> 01:49:41.720
thing. Same as the strongman events at the highest

01:49:41.720 --> 01:49:44.260
level. Really, it's at the detriment of your

01:49:44.260 --> 01:49:46.680
well -being. So I think people need to understand

01:49:46.680 --> 01:49:49.479
that. If you want to be an ultra runner or Ironman

01:49:49.479 --> 01:49:52.819
triathlete, amazing. More power to you. So much

01:49:52.819 --> 01:49:55.579
respect. But understand that that's not wellness.

01:49:56.340 --> 01:49:59.399
Wellness, you can be active. You can do sports

01:49:59.399 --> 01:50:02.260
you love and train hard three, four times a week.

01:50:03.640 --> 01:50:06.260
When you go beyond that, you're actually going

01:50:06.260 --> 01:50:08.840
away from wellness and longevity now. And if

01:50:08.840 --> 01:50:10.659
you're, for example, a firefighter who's not

01:50:10.659 --> 01:50:13.819
sleeping every third day or maybe every second

01:50:13.819 --> 01:50:16.220
day because you're getting forced to work overtimes,

01:50:16.220 --> 01:50:20.300
is running 50 miles the best thing? Or are you

01:50:20.300 --> 01:50:22.819
accelerating maybe potential injury in that particular

01:50:22.819 --> 01:50:26.060
choice of sport? So I think it's an important

01:50:26.060 --> 01:50:28.800
part of the conversation. Like the GLP -1, if

01:50:28.800 --> 01:50:30.920
you just fell in love with running and endurance

01:50:30.920 --> 01:50:33.380
sports, then... That's exactly what you should

01:50:33.380 --> 01:50:36.119
be doing. But this kind of hero worship of, you

01:50:36.119 --> 01:50:39.220
know, running, you know, like the, why am I blanking

01:50:39.220 --> 01:50:41.380
on his name? Who's the Navy SEAL that kind of

01:50:41.380 --> 01:50:43.859
started it all? Oh, Goggins. Goggins, yeah. I

01:50:43.859 --> 01:50:45.539
mean, you know, worshiping David. David's on

01:50:45.539 --> 01:50:47.680
his own journey. That's David Goggins' journey.

01:50:47.880 --> 01:50:51.100
But you, you know, you can still be a man and

01:50:51.100 --> 01:50:53.479
go to the gym for an hour, three or four times

01:50:53.479 --> 01:50:55.119
a week. You're okay. You know, you don't have

01:50:55.119 --> 01:50:58.869
to run yourself into the ground. you know, absolutely

01:50:58.869 --> 01:51:00.970
some shared suffering once in a while, you know,

01:51:00.989 --> 01:51:03.510
push your limits a little bit, but, um, that,

01:51:03.689 --> 01:51:07.050
you know, super, super endurance events, um,

01:51:07.270 --> 01:51:09.090
you know, they do come at a cost and we see it

01:51:09.090 --> 01:51:10.989
even cardiac, you know, the arrhythmias, a lot

01:51:10.989 --> 01:51:12.850
of these endurance athletes get in their forties

01:51:12.850 --> 01:51:15.689
and fifties that can be, you know, life changing

01:51:15.689 --> 01:51:18.170
or life ending. So I think it's just too important

01:51:18.170 --> 01:51:19.970
for people to understand that. So that's a nuanced

01:51:19.970 --> 01:51:22.270
conversation and it's just, it's not for everyone.

01:51:22.329 --> 01:51:26.729
So, and that's okay. That's also part of that.

01:51:27.050 --> 01:51:32.170
thing where you're going to age and are you doing

01:51:32.170 --> 01:51:36.609
more detriment to your body than like good to

01:51:36.609 --> 01:51:39.649
it by doing stuff like that like it's a tough

01:51:39.649 --> 01:51:42.449
it needs more convo as well but like are you

01:51:42.449 --> 01:51:45.529
doing more damage than you are good because you're

01:51:45.529 --> 01:51:47.729
going to age and you see these guys now like

01:51:47.729 --> 01:51:49.590
we've been around long enough where we've watched

01:51:49.590 --> 01:51:52.770
some of these guys that like Goggins like cam

01:51:52.770 --> 01:51:56.189
haines they've done amazing things but now cam's

01:51:56.189 --> 01:51:59.529
aging and you know he still puts up impressive

01:51:59.529 --> 01:52:02.989
numbers in the gym and running and but you can

01:52:02.989 --> 01:52:05.689
see the hurt you can see the toll that that's

01:52:05.689 --> 01:52:08.609
actually taken on him so like where where was

01:52:08.609 --> 01:52:10.369
that line i don't know it needs more combo but

01:52:10.369 --> 01:52:12.590
you're 100 right don't worship it don't think

01:52:12.590 --> 01:52:15.489
that don't think that because everybody's like

01:52:15.489 --> 01:52:18.789
putting this 100 milers on a pedestal that you

01:52:18.789 --> 01:52:21.670
need to be a hundred mile racer. Just start,

01:52:21.949 --> 01:52:23.829
especially if you haven't even started by going

01:52:23.829 --> 01:52:26.470
out for a walk yet. Like, you know, start with

01:52:26.470 --> 01:52:28.430
something small. I don't think you need to run

01:52:28.430 --> 01:52:31.289
a hundred miles. I have a conversation on here

01:52:31.289 --> 01:52:34.010
a lot with people who are coaches, you know,

01:52:34.029 --> 01:52:36.329
athletic trainers, you know, people that were

01:52:36.329 --> 01:52:40.689
high level athletes themselves. The kind of blurred

01:52:40.689 --> 01:52:45.069
lines in school and college. with youth athletes

01:52:45.069 --> 01:52:48.229
as far as squeezing out performance at the detriment

01:52:48.229 --> 01:52:51.130
of that young person's wellness and longevity

01:52:51.130 --> 01:52:53.850
and you see a lot of people in their 30s and

01:52:53.850 --> 01:52:57.109
40s in america with these woulda coulda shoulda

01:52:57.109 --> 01:52:59.550
stories that are now very deconditioned and unhealthy

01:52:59.550 --> 01:53:02.630
because they hit that wall and so now i think

01:53:02.630 --> 01:53:04.109
that's beautiful that we're starting to have

01:53:04.109 --> 01:53:05.869
this conversation it's like yeah it's important

01:53:05.869 --> 01:53:08.100
to win But you've got to take care. I mean, if

01:53:08.100 --> 01:53:09.939
someone's had multiple surgeries and they're

01:53:09.939 --> 01:53:12.779
only 17, 18 years old, that's a problem. That's

01:53:12.779 --> 01:53:16.420
a broken system. So you can play a bunch of sports

01:53:16.420 --> 01:53:18.140
and you look at other places in the world that

01:53:18.140 --> 01:53:21.100
have world champions. They're not training their

01:53:21.100 --> 01:53:24.060
children like we do in the US. So at the beginning

01:53:24.060 --> 01:53:26.220
of this journey as well is another important

01:53:26.220 --> 01:53:29.600
conversation of get your kids into sports, let

01:53:29.600 --> 01:53:31.300
them play at whatever level they're good at.

01:53:31.630 --> 01:53:33.909
But if they start specializing and they're getting

01:53:33.909 --> 01:53:36.449
hurt that young an age, that's a problem because

01:53:36.449 --> 01:53:38.750
that injury could follow them the rest of their

01:53:38.750 --> 01:53:42.310
life. And same into your career as well. I'm

01:53:42.310 --> 01:53:45.170
dealing myself with lower back problems and knee

01:53:45.170 --> 01:53:47.970
problems, not to the point of surgery, but they're

01:53:47.970 --> 01:53:51.189
to the point of I need to address them every

01:53:51.189 --> 01:53:54.569
day in how I train and my mobility work just

01:53:54.569 --> 01:54:00.060
to relieve tightness and tension and pain. is

01:54:00.060 --> 01:54:03.500
a direct result of not treating myself properly

01:54:03.500 --> 01:54:08.239
in the career I had and further back in sports.

01:54:08.600 --> 01:54:11.100
I grew up playing ice hockey at a very competitive

01:54:11.100 --> 01:54:15.699
rate as a kid and riding dirt bikes at very competitive

01:54:15.699 --> 01:54:19.659
in the summertime. And that all led into this

01:54:19.659 --> 01:54:22.399
job that was a very physical job. And I did things

01:54:22.399 --> 01:54:26.060
in the line trade. I did not treat my body because

01:54:26.060 --> 01:54:27.819
I was young. I could bounce back from it in a

01:54:27.819 --> 01:54:29.909
day. But it is catching up with me, not to the

01:54:29.909 --> 01:54:31.470
point of surgery, but to the point where I have

01:54:31.470 --> 01:54:33.630
to dress it every day. So it's a real thing.

01:54:33.689 --> 01:54:37.210
You do age and it sucks. Yeah, exactly. But I

01:54:37.210 --> 01:54:39.949
mean, the good thing is there are things that

01:54:39.949 --> 01:54:42.050
will help. There are proactive measures. There

01:54:42.050 --> 01:54:44.250
are movement practices that will help with back

01:54:44.250 --> 01:54:45.989
pain and knee pain and all kinds of stuff as

01:54:45.989 --> 01:54:48.449
well. So that's the good news. But the bad news

01:54:48.449 --> 01:54:50.630
is the older you get, the more time and effort

01:54:50.630 --> 01:54:53.229
you have to spend in those things to still be

01:54:53.229 --> 01:54:58.829
an active middle -aged person. Yeah. 100%. All

01:54:58.829 --> 01:55:00.630
right. Well, for people listening, where are

01:55:00.630 --> 01:55:02.590
the best places to find the Powerline podcast?

01:55:02.789 --> 01:55:06.439
And then what about yourself? Myself, my personal

01:55:06.439 --> 01:55:08.600
Instagram, I love connecting with people. If

01:55:08.600 --> 01:55:11.939
anyone has questions, especially military, looking

01:55:11.939 --> 01:55:16.100
for a place in the trades, come chat with me,

01:55:16.159 --> 01:55:20.500
open. Ryan W. Lucas is my Instagram. At Powerline

01:55:20.500 --> 01:55:25.159
Podcast is my podcast. Find it on all platforms,

01:55:25.359 --> 01:55:27.899
on YouTube, Spotify, all those platforms as well.

01:55:28.279 --> 01:55:35.359
Great. I use your term. um it's a library of

01:55:35.359 --> 01:55:38.420
resources for people to learn about the industry

01:55:38.420 --> 01:55:40.899
and the trade and that sort of thing so definitely

01:55:40.899 --> 01:55:44.220
go use that brilliant well i want to thank you

01:55:44.220 --> 01:55:46.939
so much mate it's been so great catching up again

01:55:46.939 --> 01:55:50.239
you know obviously very you know a number of

01:55:50.239 --> 01:55:52.199
things have changed since we last spoke so i

01:55:52.199 --> 01:55:54.239
think it's it's been incredible to kind of really

01:55:54.239 --> 01:55:57.479
hit some of these topics and kind of circle around

01:55:57.479 --> 01:56:00.000
and visit your world again. So I want to thank

01:56:00.000 --> 01:56:02.220
you so much for being so generous with your time

01:56:02.220 --> 01:56:04.399
and coming on the Behind the Shield podcast again.

01:56:05.220 --> 01:56:06.720
Absolutely, sir. Love it.